aliFiji Women’s Crisis Centre Coordinator, Shamima Ali says they have encountered a number of cases where mothers are forced to hide abuse against their children because the perpetrators are respected patriarchs of the family or the community.
Ali says this is one of the reasons why such cases are under-reported but they have noticed an increase in reporting after creating awareness.
She says often the child is told not to tell anyone and hide the issue and in some cases the rest of the family come down hard on the mother if she wants to report it.
While speaking to community advocates during the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre 16-Days of Activism network meeting at the FRIEND headquarters in Ba today, Ali says parents must teach their children to say a big loud no when they are being touched inappropriately.
Ali says this applies to whoever is touching them in places which makes them uncomfortable whether it is their grandfather, uncle or whoever.
She says the most important thing is for the kids to trust them to ensure they are comfortable in sharing their experiences.
