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PNG family violence hotline receives 8,000 calls in 2 years

Violence hotline (Thomson Reuters)
The number to call if you're experiencing family violence

LISA MARTIN | AAP

PORT MORESBY - An iron rod, an angry husband, and a petrified wife locked in a storeroom at work.

Defusing potentially deadly scenarios is a typical day at the office for counsellors at Papua New Guinea's domestic violence hotline, which has just clocked up its second anniversary.

Violence against women in PNG is at epidemic proportions with an estimated two-thirds experiencing physical and sexual abuse in their lifetimes.

The hotline has instigated police intervention 900 times since its inception.

It receives some funding from ChildFund Australia and has answered almost 8,000 calls, according to a report released on Wednesday.

Surprisingly, 49% of callers are men seeking relationship advice.

Family and sexual violence, relationship issues and child welfare were the top three issues for people calling.

In 63% of violence cases, the perpetrator was an intimate partner.

As well as police and legal services, the hotline provides referrals to face-to-face counselling, medical care and safe houses.

Central, Morobe, East Sepik, Southern Highlands and Eastern Highlands had the highest volume of callers compared to other provinces.

PNG readers seeking help and counselling for family and sexual violence should phone the 1-TOK KAUNSELIN HELPIM LAIN national hotline (715-08000)

Comments

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Pawa Kenny Ambiasi

Family violence will never stop. It will escalate time to time. The only way to arrest family violence lies in these two areas;
1. married man and woman must know the importance of marriage and family life.
2. we as parents needs to teach our kids on the importance of marriage and family life.

Without considering the above points, the exercise to track down family violence is waste of time and valuable resources. There is great moral decay in those who do not understand the importance of marriage and family so our actions will go in vain.

Philip Kai Morre

Hotline counselling has done a good job but something more to be done.

I have seen that some of the so-called PNG counsellors need to get more training to deal with violence against women and girls more professionally rather than operating on an ad hoc basis.

Instead of helping their clients, they add more problems to the original problems.

The government has to spend more money educating real counsellors to deal with the pressing and underling social problems especially gender based violence.

John K Kamasua

The violence meted out to the weak, the poor, the vulnerable, and especially women folk in the country reflects a crumbling society; a society that has weak institutions, and those entrusted to address such issues not doing their job.

Michael Dom

PNG counselors are doing a good job in a pathetic situation.

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