PRF Raises Serious Concerns Over Recent Gender-Based Violence Research

Pacific Recycling Foundation is raising serious concerns about a recent research report by academic Dr. Avelina Rokoduru, published in The Fiji Times on 24th July 2025, which suggests a perceived disconnect between Fiji’s national response to gender-based violence and the cultural and emotional realities of certain men.

While PRF welcomes research in the space of gender violence, such research must not diminish the decades of tireless work by frontline organisations, particularly the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre, that have laid the foundation for Fiji’s progress in supporting survivors and preventing gender-based violence. These organisations have led systemic, survivor-centred advocacy, shaped national legislation, and provided critical services that continue to save and transform lives.

Responding to a key point in the research, which claims that “Fiji’s national response to GBV has failed to stop the killings,” PRF Founder Amitesh Deo said this was an unhelpful and overly simplistic indicator.

“Using the number of femicides alone without sufficient context risks undermining the broader efforts that have saved lives. During COVID-19 and after, we have been involved in interventions with iTaukei families in close collaboration with FWCC that have directly prevented violence, transformed men, and saved lives. Even before the formation of PRF in 2022, our entrepreneurial arm, Waste Recyclers Fiji Limited, was actively engaged in similar efforts with FWCC that contributed to life-saving interventions,” said Deo.

PRF emphasises that the indicators used in this research need to be thoroughly debated, contextualised, and compared with the lived experiences of those working directly with survivors and vulnerable communities.

Deo said PRF is not dismissing the intent of the research but highlights that its conclusions must be grounded in a deeper, intersectional understanding, especially when informing national discourse.

He further pointed out that a shallow or incomplete understanding of feminism, patriarchal society, and gender power dynamics can lead to serious harm.

“Before people start debating issues of gender-based violence, there needs to be a deeper understanding of feminism. Without it, we risk giving power to regressive narratives that enable perpetrators and disempower survivors. Within PRF’s work alone, we have seen several iTaukei men from informal and marginalised communities undergo comprehensive gender-based violence training and sensitisation, and that has only been possible through long-term, expert-led engagement from organisations such as FWCC,” said Deo.

PRF’s core area of work is grassroots-based recycling and environmental sustainability; however, it is also a rights-based organisation that intersects with issues of gender justice through its community-based programs.

Deo said PRF works not only with the Collection Pillars of Recycling (CPR) but also across various other informal and marginalised spaces around the country, engaging both women and men. These engagements often include legal literacy, gender sensitisation, and domestic violence training conducted by expert partners like FWCC, who have provided their services on multiple occasions.

“In our work across grassroots communities and with women and men in informal sectors, we have seen firsthand the ripple effects of a decades-long campaign to break the silence around domestic violence and dismantle deeply entrenched patriarchal norms,” said Deo.

“Their programs have not only empowered survivors but have also helped create safer, more inclusive spaces in workplaces and communities. Many women today are thriving in roles once deemed unsuitable for them, a shift catalysed by the persistent advocacy and awareness efforts of FWCC and other similar organisations.”

Deo further stated that PRF has consistently raised alarms about a worrying global leadership shift, where men involved in rights violations are being idealised.

“These regressive models of leadership send the wrong message and do real damage, especially in smaller nations like ours. They empower men in the wrong way and undermine the incredible work of feminist organisations. These shifts are affecting real progress on the ground.”

He added that the root cause of gender-based violence remains the deeply entrenched patriarchal structures in society.

“You cannot expect behavioural shifts overnight. Changing harmful attitudes among men takes sustained engagement and social investment, not isolated indicators or top-down analysis,” said Deo.

PRF stands by the importance of evidence-based research in shaping policies, but stresses that such efforts must amplify and not marginalise the voices and decades-long work of those on the frontlines.