Apart from domestic violence, the Fiji Women Crisis Centre has also recorded an increase in reports of emotional abuse.

Apart from domestic violence, the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre has also recorded an increase in reports of emotional abuse and marital rape.

Coordinator Shamima Ali says many women have called their office seeking help.

Ali says incidents have increased in the past three months when perpetrators stayed home because of the lockdown period while some also lost their jobs.

She says some women had said they were denied the right to call their family or leave home.

“Men were at home 24/7 so there was physical violence, there was an increase in marital rape, rape within the home, there was also a lot of emotional abuse, a lot of cohesive control, you know he was controlling her every move, her phone she couldn’t call out, she couldn’t talk to friends and families, you know all those things happened.”

The Centre Coordinator has also highlighted that in some cases men have also called them seeking advice on certain matters.