International Women's Association Fiji President, Judy Compain has hit out at Minister for Information, Lynda Tabuya after the Minister accused the mainstream media of spreading misinformation, which is when true information is shared with the intention to cause harm or embarrassment.
Tabuya said in parliament that it is true that the lift at CWM Hospital was not working, but added that if media organisations had dug a little deeper into the issue, it would not have been taken out of context and published without proper context.
She says the lift broke down at 2.30am and the Ministry moved fast to rectify it throughout the day and then managed to get it fixed and by that time, the Ministry had been attacked.
Tabuya says lifts break down but they ask the media to report fairly and at least, get a statement from the Ministry of Health and how they also took steps to rectify it.
She claims it was certainly put out to embarrass the Ministry.
fijivillage News clarifies that during the lift breakdowns at the CWM Hospital and issues faced by the patients and their families, we have always contacted the Ministry of Health for clarification, and have also run news items on the planned repair works and replacement of the lifts.
The Minister had further said in parliament that issues of concern also includes the leaking of confidential details where for instance confidential information being leaked from the Fiji Police has been investigated as well, and that also amounts to a crime.
She stresses that the sharing of private information without consent is a crime as well.
Meanwhile Compain asks Tabuya when was the last time she visited CWM Hospital, and questions whether the lift broke down once.
She says that lift has broken down repeatedly, over and over again.
Compain says this was not a one-off incident that was unfairly reported.
She adds this has been an ongoing, chronic failure that affected real people every single time it happened.
Compain says it is not malinformation to report that, it is the truth and the full truth, not the version that is convenient for the Minister or the Ministry of Health.
She says imagine mums and dads and grandparents admitting their sick children to the CWM Children's Ward over the last 8+ years.
Compain says lugging all their bags, their belongings, everything up the stairs because there was no working lift.
She says she shouted about it, she screamed about it and everyone else should have.
Compain says it took so much time and energy to get the children's lift installed.
She then asks whether we should not talk about the mould in the ceilings, the leaks in all those buildings, broken taps, missing louvres, toilets not working, shortage of medicines, consumables and basic equipment.
Compain invites Tabuya, the Minister for Health, the whole Ministry team and everyone in Parliament to visit CWM Hospital, use that lift, walk the corridors, look up at the ceilings, at the floors, at the spaces, look in the bathrooms and sit in the emergency department because she has.
Tabuya had also said in parliament that Government is stepping up efforts to fight misinformation and disinformation as false information continues to spread rapidly online, especially during major national events and emergencies.
She highlighted this in response to Assistant Minister for Information Iliesa Vanawalu's question on the measures and strategies the Ministry has adopted to counter misinformation and disinformation.
She says false claims about school and business closures, fake statements falsely linked to the Prime Minister, and misleading reports on official protocols forced the Ministry to repeatedly correct misinformation through official channels.
Tabuya says while criticism of Government is part of democracy, there has been a rise in speculation, false claims, personal attacks and deliberate distortion of facts on social media, which can damage trust in public institutions and create division.
To address this, she says the Ministry has launched a Counter Disinformation Framework aimed at helping Government agencies quickly identify false information, assess how serious it is, decide on the right response and ensure the correct facts reach the public without amplifying false claims.
She says the framework is being rolled out across Government, with media liaison and information officers being trained to respond consistently and responsibly to misinformation.
Tabuya says the initiative is being supported by the UK Government, while a new Government Communications Guidebook has also been introduced to improve how ministries communicate accurate and verified information.
She adds that Government is also closely monitoring online platforms and media reports, correcting false information quickly and referring posts that threaten national security to relevant authorities, including the Online Safety Commission and the Cybercrime Unit.
Tabuya confirms work is already underway to strengthen Fiji’s online safety laws, with the Law Reform Commission reviewing the legislation that could give the Online Safety Commission greater powers, including prosecutorial authority and the ability to issue takedown notices and penalties to major tech companies that fail to act on harmful content.
