Tabuya’s nude viral video, says “it was private”

Controversial Minister for Wom­en, Children and Social Protec­tion, Lynda Tabuya, has once again found herself at the centre of a storm-this time over a leaked pri­vate video she confirmed was intend­ed for her husband.

In an email yesterday at 5.24pm, ad­dressed to Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka, Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre’s Shamima Ali, Permanent Secretary Eseta Nadakuitavuki, and the media, Ms Tabuya labelled the incident as a grim reflection of technology-facili­tated gender-based violence, a crime impacting two-thirds of women and girls in Fiji.

“There is nothing scandalous or ille­gal or immoral about sharing private videos and images between two con­senting adults who are in a relation­ship, in this case me and my husband,” Ms Tabuya said.

“It is the illegal obtaining and circu­lating of these private videos and im­ages that is criminal.

“Individuals and organisations circu­lating the private video of me trying to turn it into a scandal including media outlets claiming it will have negative effects on my position as the Minister for Women are perpetuating and pro­moting online violence as this is the very real experience that two thirds of our women and girls in Fiji face!”

Sextortion and revenge porn
The minister condemned acts like sextortion-where stolen or hacked private images are used to extort mon­ey-and revenge porn, where such ma­terial is maliciously shared to damage reputations. “These are crimes and it must stop,” she declared.

“I represent every woman and girl who is dealing with this daily with their families in Fiji and it is my duty to continue to speak up against this crime, and even more so when I am personally facing it.” Ms Tabuya also lashed out at Fijivil­lage, accusing the media outlet of un­ethical journalism. She claimed it broke the story on its Face book page without verifying facts. “They lied about speaking to me be­fore publishing,” she said.

“I call on the Fiji Media Council to en­force ethical standards.” Fijivillage confirmed that they had reached out to the minister’s office for comment. Ms Tabuya’s public relations team did not respond to Fijivillage with a substantive response.

Legal action in motion

Ms Tabuya revealed she has evidence against at least one individual who shared the video and intends to file a police complaint under the Online Safety Act and Crimes Act. She issued a stern warning to others distributing the material, stating they will face serious legal consequences. Prime Minister Rabuka has report­edly written to Ms Tabuya seeking an explanation but remained unavailable for comment when this edition went to press.

Feedback: jone.salusalu@fijisun.com.fj