Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama has issued a stern warning that he will be using every opportunity to condemn the epidemic of domestic violence in Fiji.

Bainimarama says this issue has been going on for many years and adds that domestic violence has become the ugly underbelly of Fijian culture.

The Prime Minister says it has been allowed to persist for too long and is no longer acceptable.

‘’Violence against women, children, the elderly and the weak diminish us as a people. It creates fear and distrust, it robs people of their potential, and quite simply, it is cruel. Domestic violence causes greater pain than other forms of violence because it is such a profound betrayal committed against family members by the very ones who should be giving love and protection’’.

Bainimarama adds that even though government has changed laws to protect women and children, it is not enough to stop it.

The Prime Minister says Fiji must shame or shun the person who even thinks about committing this act in the first place.

Bainimarama is calling on every Fijian to declare that domestic violence must stop in our country.