The Great Council of Chiefs has weighed in on the call for longer sentences and life imprisonment for those convicted for sexual crimes against children.
Chairman of the GCC Ratu Viliame Seruvakula said discussion around this issue at the chiefs meeting drew a consensus that harsher penalties need to be meted out.
“One thing the GCC is wanting to raise awareness on is punishment dished out to rapists and sexual offenders. Some of the concerns raised are that these sentences are too lenient.”
“The leader of the church (Methodist Church of Fiji) was asked to comment on it and that is another matter that will be brought to the sub committee because the process has to be holistic, you have the church, human rights…and basically all sectors of the community need to discuss it.”
The GCC proposal will now be forwarded to the sub committee that has been formed to formulate agreed outcomes from the chiefly meeting.
