Ending violence against women – full interview with Peopleconnexion PNG team
Today we mark the United Nations International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, also known as White Ribbon Day. This day globally raises awareness and commits to action to prevent men’s violence against women. This event is part of the 20 Days of Activism to Stop Violence Against Women which aims to create community momentum towards ending violence against women.
I sat down with two members of the Peopleconnexion PNG team, Stephen Mead and Gima Tapaveri, to discuss the issue of domestic violence in PNG and to understand what more can be down in their opinions to end violence against women.
Gender violence is not a new problem. It takes place in virtually all societies around the world, but only in the last thirty years has it become visible as a social issue. Particularly in the last decade, violence against women is increasingly being seen as an important problem by many Papua New Guineans.
For many Papua New Guineans, gender violence is a pervasive problem, the rates of domestic violence in PNG are horrific. Approximately two in three women experience physical and/or sexual abuse by their intimate partners or family members. Domestic and family violence tears lives apart, it affects women, children, the family and the community. It limits women’s participation in social, political and economic life. This significantly impacts on development outcomes, affecting families and communities and placing significant strains on health care, social services and policing and justice systems. In the workplace it impacts on the health and safety of employees, their wellbeing and productivity, and can impact negatively on workplace culture, organisational reputation and bottom-line profit and loss.
Prevention of violence requires coordinated efforts at all levels aimed at raising awareness of related issues, changing community norms about violence and increasing women’s status in society. As a community, the starting point is learning about how to behaver towards each other with respect, trust and equality to ensure our community actively works towards ending violence against women. Laws and comprehensive measures that criminalise violence against women and girls must be adopted, reviewed and effectively implemented.
Today we are are asking PNG to come together, and say ?no? to violence against women. It takes all of us.
