“The reality is that those who pose the greatest risk to vulnerable women and children are acquaintances within the family, religious orgainsations and friends.”
Police Commissioner Brigadier General Sitiveni Qiliho made this comment while speaking at the Speaker’s debate organized by the Parliament of Fiji.
He said most sexual abusers offend against children whom they know and have established a relationship and have gained their trust.
The Police Commissioner also revealed that crimes against women increased by 6 percent while crimes against children increased by 13 percent in the first quarter of this year.
Qiliho said these are the reported cases and there can be many unreported cases.
He also highlighted that there were 2,651 reported cases of sexual offences in 2015.
He said women were victims in 1,698 cases.
It has also been revealed that 650 cases involved children under the age of 17.
The Police Commissioner said the recent trend in sexual offence cases has prompted Police to relook at its policing methods and operational strategies in combating such crimes.
Qiliho added that he has a desire to have a study carried out to determine why these crimes continue to occur especially when it is happening in the confines of our homes.
