August 23, 2023
More reporting needed as violence surges
Fewer than 5 percent of those suffering family and sexual violence report it.
That’s the response of Marama Davidson, the Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence, to the revelation from New Zealand Women’s Refuge that it’s receiving 1000 referrals a week and dealing with an average of 71 crisis calls a day.
She says encouraging people to report violence is a key component of the National Strategy to Eliminate Violence, Te Aorerekura.
“So we do want to see an increase in people feeling they are safe enough to put their hand up for help. We need to see people who use violence feeling they can put their hand up for help to stop using violence as well,” Ms Davidson says.
She says Te Aorerekura is a 25-year generational strategy but the transformational changes is finally starting.