Torture by Police, Forced Disappearance & Other Ill Treatment In the early years of the 21st Century, 2000 to
2025 gvnet.com/torture/Fiji.htm
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CAUTION: The following links
have been culled from the web to illuminate the situation in Fiji. Some of these links may lead to websites
that present allegations that are unsubstantiated or even false. No
attempt has been made to validate their authenticity or to verify their content. HOW TO USE THIS WEBPAGE Students If you are looking
for material to use in a term-paper, you are advised to scan the postings on this
page and others to see which aspects of Torture by Authorities are of
particular interest to you. You might
be interested in exploring the moral justification for inflicting pain or
inhumane or degrading treatment or punishment in order to obtain critical
information that may save countless lives, or to elicit a confession for a
criminal act, or to punish someone to teach him a lesson outside of the
courtroom. Perhaps your paper might
focus on some of the methods of torture, like fear, extreme temperatures,
starvation, thirst, sleep deprivation, suffocation, or immersion in freezing
water. On the other hand, you might
choose to write about the people acting in an official capacity who
perpetrate such cruelty. There is a
lot to the subject of Torture by Authorities.
Scan other countries as well as this one. Draw comparisons between activity in
adjacent countries and/or regions.
Meanwhile, check out some of the Term-Paper
resources that are available on-line. ***
FEATURED *** Fiji military
leader admits beatings, torture Kathy Marks, The
Age, Fairfax Media Network, 20 June 2014 www.theage.com.au/world/fiji-military-leader-admits-beatings-torture-20140620-zsg90.html [accessed 22 June
2014] As Fiji prepares
for its first elections in eight years, the new head of the all-powerful
armed forces has admitted that citizens have been beaten and tortured by the
military regime, claiming it was necessary to stave off civil disorder. “I wouldn’t deny
that these things happened,” said Brigadier-General Mosese
Tikoitoga, hand-picked successor of Frank
Bainimarama, who has stepped down from the military to contest the elections.
“But a lot of these people were actually trying to instigate violence by
creating anti-government movements or militant groups. “They were talking
on the radio and so on … If you let them continue to have a voice, you create a potentially dangerous environment. So
it was the lesser of two devils.” Fiji: “Shocking”
video depicts alleged torture of prisoners Amnesty
International, 5 March 2013 www.amnesty.org/en/news/fiji-shocking-video-depicts-alleged-torture-prisoners-2013-03-05 [accessed 5 March
2013] [accessed 24 August
2016] Video footage
apparently showing the torture of two men in Fiji is “shocking”, Amnesty
International said on Tuesday, as it called for an independent investigation
into the events. The nine minute
video posted online appears to show two men being repeatedly beaten with
poles, as they lie huddled on the ground handcuffed and screaming in agony as
batons are used repeatedly against them. The authenticity of
the footage is still to be verified and the perpetrators are not in uniform,
however, it appears consistent with earlier reports of brutality against
prisoners. “This appalling incident
appears to be the latest example of abuse. The Fijian authorities must treat
this shocking footage with the utmost seriousness and immediately initiate an
independent investigation,” said Roseann Rife of Amnesty International.
“While the video is still to be verified what is clear is that torture is
unacceptable under any circumstances and those responsible must be brought to
justice.” “The humiliation of
the men and their injuries evident in the video is very serious. Forced to
undress and harassed by a dog, as men nearby laugh, it is difficult to watch.
The subsequent brutal beating with batons is harrowing. It is torture.” Amnesty
International is calling for an independent and transparent investigation
into these events. ***
ARCHIVES *** 2020 Country
Reports on Human Rights Practices: Fiji U.S. Dept of State Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and
Labor, 30 March 2021 www.state.gov/reports/2020-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/fiji/
[accessed 18 July
2021] TORTURE AND OTHER
CRUEL, INHUMAN, OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT The police Ethical
Standards Unit is responsible for investigating complaints
of police misconduct. As of July, the Office of the Director of Public
Prosecutions charged 38 officers for police misconduct. PRISON AND DETENTION
CENTER CONDITIONS Prisons were
overcrowded. In September 2018, according to an Asian and Pacific Conference
of Correctional Administrators report, prisons in the country had a capacity
of 1,916 and a population of 2,643. There were insufficient beds, inadequate
sanitation, and a shortage of other necessities. Freedom House
Country Report 2018 Edition freedomhouse.org/country/fiji/freedom-world/2018 [accessed 12 May
2020] F3. IS THERE PROTECTION FROM THE ILLEGITIMATE
USE OF PHYSICAL FORCE AND FREEDOM FROM WAR AND INSURGENCIES? Although the number
of reported cases declined in 2017, torture and beatings by police remained a
problem. Police officers and military officials who commit abuses are rarely
brought to justice, and those who are convicted of crimes are frequently
pardoned or have their convictions overturned on appeal. Prisons are often
overcrowded, lack sanitation, and provide inadequate health services. Fiji
torture victims claim further police intimidation Radio New Zealand
RNZ, 24 February 2018 [accessed 27
February 2018] The village headman
for a group of men in Fiji who say they were tortured by the police says
officers threatened to return to the village if they spoke of their ordeal. The group's lawyer
told RNZ earlier this week that nine policemen arrived in Waikubukubu
village on the 26th of January, took the men to a nearby police post and
proceeded to beat them for hours. Today, the headman
of Waikubukubu, Peceli Natusoro, told the Fiji Times that when they were
released without charge, the nine men were warned not to speak of their
ordeal or the officers would return. Mr Natusoro told the newspaper the men were so traumatised and fearful of retribution that they did not
seek immediate medical attention. One of the men's
mothers says her son was bedridden for days before his wife forced him to go
to the hospital. UN
High Commissioner concerned at Fiji media curbs Radio New Zealand
RNZ, 13 February 2018 www.radionz.co.nz/news/pacific/350304/un-high-commissioner-concerned-at-fiji-media-curbs [accessed 13
February 2018] I also call on the
government to withdraw its reservations to the UN Convention Against Torture,
particularly regarding the definition of torture and access to remedies, and
ratify the option of protocol to this convention. Torture
ratification praised Felix Chaudhary,
Fiji Times ONOLINE, 10 December 2017 www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=427002 [accessed 12
December 2017] www.fijitimes.com/torture-ratification-praised/ [accessed 1 January
2019] The steps taken by Fiji to ratify the Convention Against Torture and
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was praised by by British High Commissioner Melanie Hopkins. Speaking at the
19th Attorney General's Conference at Natadola last
Friday, Ms Hopkins said she hoped other nations
would follow Fiji's example in signing up to important conventions that would
help address issues of concern in Pacific island nations. Fiji
groups urge ratification of torture treaty Radio New Zealand
International, 23 February 2015 www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/266868/fiji-groups-urge-ratification-of-torture-treaty [accessed 30 March
2015] Several countries
called on Fiji to urgently ratify the international agreement at a hearing of
the Human Rights Council in Geneva earlier this year. A video showing a
handcuffed man being beaten reportedly by security forces went viral in 2013
and is still being investigated. Fiji: Open letter
concerning reports of torture of recaptured prisonners Amnesty
International, Index Number: ASA 18/002/2012, 12 December 2012 www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA18/002/2012/en [accessed 6 March
2013] [7 December 2012] The above
information has been openly reported in the media, however limited
information has been available on the health of the five men since they were
recaptured and the causes of such serious injuries. amnesty International has
received verified and reliable information, which details the treatment of
these five men after they were recaptured. It includes testimony that the men
complied with the directions of armed military officers and did not resist
arrest when they were recaptured at Uduya Point. The testimony
states that armed military officers tortured the men following their
recapture at Uduya Point. The men were handcuffed
and beaten. They were then placed on a boat and taken to the mainland.
Security officers threw a handcuffed and injured Qaranigio
into the sea several times, each time hauling him back into the boat. The men
were then taken to Nabua military barracks where
the torture continued. The testimony says
that the men were forced to take off all their clothes and were left naked in
dark cells. The men were kicked, hit with the butt of guns, sworn at, spat on
and had hot water poured on them. One of the men was unconscious for most of
two days in which he was in military custody at Nabua
barracks. Another suffered rectal injuries after military officers pushed the
barrel of a gun into his anus. AMNESTY
INTERNATIONAL From an old article -- URL not available Article was
published sometime prior to 2015 TORTURE AND OTHER
ILL-TREATMENT
- Police and security forces faced allegations of torture and other
ill-treatment, including beating, threatening and intimidating people,
particularly government critics. In September, five
men who escaped from prison were recaptured by security forces and were
reportedly tortured. All five were hospitalized as a result of their injuries
and one had his leg amputated. Search … AMNESTY
INTERNATIONAL For current
articles:: Search Amnesty
International Website www.amnesty.org/en/search/?q=fiji+torture&ref=&year=&lang=en&adv=1&sort=relevance [accessed 1 January 1, 2019] Scroll
Down ***
EARLIER EDITIONS OF SOME OF THE ABOVE *** Human Rights
Reports » 2006 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2006/78773.htm [accessed 28 January
2013] 2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61608.htm [accessed 3 July
2019] TORTURE
AND OTHER CRUEL, INHUMAN, OR DEGRADING TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT – The constitution
prohibits such practices; however, there were some reports of abuses by
police during the year. The military committed numerous abuses after the
December 5 coup. Reported incidents
of police beatings and other abuse of apprehended persons and prisoners prior
to the coup were investigated and, when appropriate, offending officers were
prosecuted and punished. All such cases appeared to be isolated incidents,
not condoned by supervisory officers. At year's end the investigation into a
2005 case in which the police allegedly failed to obtain prompt medical
treatment for a suspect injured during apprehension was still ongoing. Following the coup
there were numerous incidents of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF)
detaining without a warrant and abusing persons who had voiced opposition to
the coup or who supported a return to democratic government. In the late
hours of December 24 and early hours of December 25, soldiers took six
prodemocracy supporters from their homes, including young persons who had erected
a "prodemocracy shrine" outside a house in Lami
(see section 2.a.), and brought them to the RFMF's Queen Elizabeth barracks,
where they reportedly were beaten, stepped on, and threatened with weapons.
They were then forced to run several miles through Suva followed by soldiers
in vehicles. Also on December 25, the military seized five young men in a
Suva suburb and made them strip to their underwear and crawl through drain
pipes before being dropped at a remote jungle location to find their way home.
In another incident soldiers seized a former government minister overheard in
a bar criticizing Bainimarama, roughed him up, and made him run around a
track at gunpoint. Some women detained by the military for speaking out
against the coup were sexually molested. All
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ARTICLES. Cite this
webpage as: Patt, Prof. Martin, "Torture by Police, Forced Disappearance
& Other Ill Treatment in the early years of the 21st Century- Fiji",
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