The Papua New Guinea – Australia partnership continues its focus on improving gender equality and ending family sexual violence in the country.
A recent visit by anti-violence campaigner and 2015 Australian of the year, Rosie Batty, was an opportunity to showcase some of the achievements of the partnership.
The PNG-Australia Partnership works across a number of sectors including justice and gender.
In the law and justice sector, Australia is in partnership with the Family & Sexual Violence Action Committee, working to improve coordination and quality of services provided to survivors of violence.
Dr Lawrence Kalinoe, Chair of the National Family & Sexual Violence Action Committee (FSVAC), said we have to make sure that whatever is written in the law actually gets translated into physical, tangible systems on the ground, and that they function properly.
A recent workshop brought together provincial police, state lawyers and other stakeholders.
Australian High Commission Minister Counsellor, Rod Hilton, said it’s a safe and secure community that leads to economic development and on to a society being enabled to realise its potential. So gender is a core economic issue.
Hilton said an effective response to ending family and sexual violence is about better access to justice, improved support services and ultimately, prevention.
Ms Batty who was guest speaker at the workshop, commended participants for their passion and commitment to bring about change.
She said family violence needed to be part of the conversations at schools, in the workplace and at homes all over the world.
