A High Court judge in Fiji has warned that 'murder as a remedy is no answer'.
Justice Salesi Temo made the comment while sentencing a 33-year-old man to life in prison for murdering his wife after a marital dispute.
Photo: 123RF
Josevata Koroi stabbed his wife four times with a kitchen knife in Naitasiri last May.
Justice Temo said the facts of the case demonstrated the 'all too familiar problem of one's inability to deal peacefully with the infidelity of a spouse'.
He warns the infidelity among spouses sometimes creeps in if there is turmoil in the family.
Koroi will have to serve a minimum term of 18 years before a pardon may be considered.
The court was told that Koroi had been aware since 2017 that his wife was having an affair with another man.
Koroi had tried to resolve the matter by asking her to end the relationship, the court heard. However, she continued.
Temo said on May 1 2020, Koroi decided to end his wife's life.
The judge said Koroi did not seek a resolution to his marital problem in the family court.
"You say you were provoked by the infidelity of your wife since 2017, but this was not enough to satisfy the legal criteria," Temo told Koroi.
Justice Temo further stressed that the problem Koroi encountered in his case was not unfamiliar in Fiji and the rest of the world.
He added people must learn to resolve problems peacefully, either through counselling or divorce proceedings in the family court.
Koroi will have to serve a minimum term of 18 years before a pardon may be considered.
