Tevita Maqu, 12, along with his frightened four younger siblings could only watch in disbelief as their mother was brutally assaulted to death by their father.

This horrific case of domestic violence at their home in Narewa, Nadi on Saturday allegedly led to the death of Kelera Sivo the next day.

Police spokesperson, Ana Naisoro said a 39-year-old man was in police custody following the death of his 38-year-old wife.

Ms Naisoro said the suspect assaulted the victim in their home during a heated argument over as to why she had arrived home late.

The victim, who was believed to be four months pregnant worked in handicraft shop at a resort in Denarau while the suspect works as a security guard.

Maqu, the eldest siblings, said last Saturday they watched in fright as their dad assaulted their mother and threatened to kill her.

“He brutally assaulted her infront of us. He whipped her and threw a coconut on her stomach,” Maqu said.

“He tried to wrap a tarpaulin around her and set her on fire. He asked us if we want him to kill her and we said no.

“We always get scared when they quarrel. On Saturday, he punched and beat up my mother. Her face was swollen and marks with blooded all over her body.

“Mum couldn’t run away because she was in great pain and on Sunday, she was lying on the bed unconscious.”

The boy said he would never forget the brutal incident that happened in his home.

The victim’s younger sister, Ruby Maqu said Kelera was a kind person who never complained if she was going through any difficulty.

“She silently keeps to herself, everything she goes through with her family. It hurts me a lot because everything she went through ended in her death,” Ruby said.

The victim 

Ms Naisoro said a post mortem examination would be conducted to confirm the victim’s cause of death as investigations continue.

Women’s Crisis Centre 

The Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre (FWCC) coordinator Shamima Ali was shocked to hear about the incident.

She said this was the ultimate result of years and years of violence and inequality.

“Most women who are violated are from rural communities normally we go all over the place, village communities and the islands,” Ms Ali said.

FWCC conducts awareness sessions on where to get help and prevention. The Centre get men involved as allies with the Turaga ni Koro leading the awareness in villages.

Ms Ali pointed to Fiji’s patriarchy entrenched in the country with mindsets difficult to change.

“Ending violence against women is a huge challenge everywhere in the world and Fiji is no exception,”

As the festive season draws near, Ms Ali’s message to women and men who go through any form of abuse is: “If you sense danger and are at risk, please seek help.”

The FWCC will soon release a statement regarding the Narewa incident.

Ms Ali said for men going through issues and feel like they are uncontrollable need to talk about things, they can also call the toll free line.

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