Stop blaming women for the violence against women, Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre Co-ordinator Shamima Ali urges.

Ms Ali said this was a point of discussion at the Service Delivery Protocol workshop at the Friendly North Inn yesterday.

“It is terrible the kind of things women have to endure and the impact it has on society,” Ms Ali said.

“The everyday physical violence, the emotional violence, the control, they all come from their protectors where they should feel the safest.

“If we want to avoid these things then we totally have to call out and speak out against domestic violence and rape against women and children, especially against domestic violence as it is around where the murder is happening.

“The action has been pre-meditated; they plan to do that – it’s not that the guy just got very angry. The women have left them, they have lost their power and they can’t take it – that makes them very angry,” she said.

Ms Ali said a lot of social problems also came from society’s attitude, which was the biggest problem.

She said society had to stop the acceptance that a man had the right and entitlement to beat up women for anything to justify the violence.

“We have to stop doing that, no matter what she has done, whether she’s having an affair, not obeying his rules, not cooking the food, he still has no right to lift the finger on her, to abuse her or murder her,” she said.

Ms Ali has called on all stakeholders, families, communities and the society as a whole to support women in what they’re going through and allow them to make decisions for themselves.

Police should give all the support as they are the main stakeholders. They have such a big role to play,” Ms Ali said.

“When a woman decides to leave, she needs to be kept safe. It has to be a safe place whoever is dealing with her.

“We can do all these, but unless we can work with the men to change their mindset, to change their behaviour, unless we do that and start talking with our boys, we will be still talking about it in the next 10 years,” she said.

Edited by Jonathan Bryce

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