Investigative Reports’ Shocking Tales of Sexual Abuse of Children, Women Could Be Tip of Iceberg
The Fiji Sun investigative project, appropriately named Shine a Light, has revealed shocking tales of sexual abuse of children and women. It indicates that the statistics provided by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions could be the tip of the iceberg.
They represent the reported cases. Shine a Light has exposed alleged cases that have not been reported for various reasons.
There was a time when sexual offences like rape, incest, abuse and assault were concealed by the affected families because of the associated stigma.
Cultural sensitivities were used to hide the shame that families of victims and perpetrators suffer - that hushing up the heinous crimes was acceptable to protect the reputation and image of the families affected. What was forgotten was the physical, emotional and psychological trauma of the victims. For many of them the scars of their painful experience stay with them for a long time and act as obstacles to their development and progress.
Public awareness programmes and the amendment to the law ensure that justice is seen to be done.
This has helped to change thinking and more cases are now being reported.
Before the change, courts would accept reconciliation between the families of the victims and perpetrators. That practice has now gone and the focus is now on not only punishing those who are found guilty but sending out a strong message that these crimes will not be condoned.
The challenge for the courts is to make sure there is consistency in their rulings.
Another challenge is how young victims are crossexamined by lawyers and judges conduct proceedings that are victim friendly. The former Assistant DPP warns that lawyers need to be trained to ensure that the justice process does not re-victimise young victims.
The other stakeholder in this issue is the communities. Families and residents of communities must report any incidents to the relevant authorities like the Police. There must also be a proactive approach to prevent such incidents. It requires the collective action of families, community leaders, schools, faith groups, Government agencies, law enforcement and civil society.