Last month, there was a significant rise in crimes against women and children, with incidents against women rising by 39 percent and those against children increasing by 9 percent.
Out of the 232 reported cases of crimes against women, a staggering 88 percent involved assaults, while the remaining 12 percent were categorized as sexual offenses. Notably, 31 percent of these cases were related to domestic violence, where the assailant was a spouse or partner.
One of the key contributors to the surge in crimes against women was the number of assaults causing actual bodily harm, which totaled 181 cases—an increase of 65 from the same period last year.
In terms of crimes against children, 153 cases were documented, with 96 victims being girls and 57 boys. Among these incidents, 53 percent were sexual offenses, 35 percent were assault-related, and 12 percent were associated with other types of offenses.
The Fiji Police Force attributed the rise in crimes against children primarily to an increase in cases of assault causing actual bodily harm, which grew from 25 to 45 cases.