SUVA, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- The Fijian government has a strong message for fathers to be mindful and respectful towards their wives and women in general.

With many people celebrating the Father's Day on Sunday, Fiji's Social Welfare Minister Mereseini Vuniwaqa said fathers must realize the important role their wives or women in their families played.

With an alarming rate of violence against women, Vuniwaqa pleaded all men to safeguard their wives, mothers and sisters.

Vuniwaqa said they were working with relevant stakeholders to ensure awareness was created on the issue of violence against women.

Fiji has one of the highest statistics in the world on domestic violence.

"Fiji has one of the highest statistics in the world on domestic violence that has pushed us as a nation to address domestic violence as a matter of national importance across all sectors," said Vuniwaqa.

According to the Fiji Women's Crisis Center, 64 percent of women who have been in intimate relationships have experienced physical or sexual violence from their partners, including 61 percent who were physically attacked and 34 percent who were sexually abused.

In 2017, Fiji launched a domestic violence toll-free hotline, hoping this will help reduce domestic violence against women in the country with a population of more than 880,000.?