Domestic violence causing women to flee homes in Solomons

Transcript

Increasing domestic violence in Solomon Islands is being blamed for the rise in the number of women and children seeking shelter in a care-centre in Honiara.

The Church of Melanesia's Christian Care Centre's director, Sister Doreen Awaiasi, says she is having to turn people away as the centre is at full capacity.

Sister Doreen says awareness campaigns against gender-based violence are starting to make headway and the new Family Protection Act makes domestic violence a crime.

But she told Mary Baines there aren't nearly enough safe places for women and children, with her centre being the only one of its kind in the country.

SISTER DOREEN AWAIASI: People, women and children, need the place. Sometimes we have referrals from the police, from other stakeholders like a family support centre, social welfare. We have stakeholders like the public solicitors, the Ministry of Health. But at the same time women know the place, they can walk to the place. They know where the location is. We also have referrals from families, from churches. If women want to, you know, put the complaint, refer it to the police, they come through the Christian Care Centre. Domestic violence is high, but I think we are only in Honiara, where the Christian Care Centre is situated is only in one part of Solomon Islands. You can imagine other places where there is no safe home. Other rural areas where there is no police station, things available for women and children. I don't think women are reporting issues relating to domestic violence.

MARY BAINES: So do you think domestic violence is increasing?

SDA: I think so, it is in places. Women in other places where the services are not available for them, they are not talking. This is only one particular place in Honiara. We also have referrals from all over Solomon Islands, but then the safe home is situated in in Honiara.

MB: Do you think there is enough being done to help women, especially in those outer areas that don't have centres?

SDA: There is a lot of awareness raising, and we also have women organisations that women can go to. In terms of safe homes, where women can come away from any violence, we don't have other places as we have a safe home in the Solomon Islands as we run the Christian Care Centre. There is no other safe home. Like at home, people can go to their family, but in terms of confidentiality, people you know, they will find them. But at the Christian Care Centre, they can come over from any violent relationship and they can stay there in a very safe place.

MB: The new Family Protection Act, the new law, do you think it's helping?

SDA: I should think so. This is our cry, our cry for women and children for a long, long time. I think we have listened to the voices of our women and children, this is why we have lobbied the government, other Solomon Islands women too, behind pushing the Family Bill so that the parliament would say yes to what we wanted. There are a lot of women, we wanted to protect women and children.

MB: So what more would you like to see done to protect women and children?

SDA: Well I think any violence, whether sexual violence, physical violence, or psychological violence, the perpetrators need to go to prison. It is justice for our women and children.