Court sentences rapist to prison – The Fiji Times

A Lautoka man who raped his underage niece three times between January and December 2022 has been sentenced to 12 years in prison by the High Court in Lautoka.

At the time of the incidents, the victim was living with the defendant in his house.

“Courts at all levels in Fiji have repeatedly stated that the rape of a child is the most serious form of sexual violence,” Judge Aruna Aluthge said in a ruling on Monday this week.

“The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Fiji is a party, and our own Constitution require the courts to protect the rights of children, who are vulnerable members of our society.

“Our society and children expect their elders to take care of them and protect them.”

“Children have a right to a life free from physical or psychological abuse.”

Judge Aluthge said the number of sexual offences involving children was increasing in Fiji.

“The courts have stressed that the increasing frequency of this crime in our society requires deterrent penalties.

“The task of this court is to ensure that penalties have a deterrent effect and prevent the commission of such crimes.”

The court imposed a probation period of eleven years.