Laws only one part of solution to ending domestic violence in the Pacific
Former Judge Mere Pulea said laws against domestic violence are just one part of the solution to ending domestic violence in her opening address at the Pacific Community Gender and Law Consultation this year.
The consultation was held in Nadi and was organised by the Pacific Community’s Regional Rights Resource Team (RRRT) in partnership with UN Women and the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement.
Ms Pulea said:
“Putting in place laws against domestic violence in 11 Pacific Island countries is a major achievement which will have profound impacts on the lives of victims of violence. However, legislation in itself is only part of the solution.”
“There is much more to be done to effectively implement these laws, a challenge that is rivalled only by our underestimation of the difficulty of bringing about attitudinal and systemic changes.”
Lawyers, police and policy officers from Pacific countries who have domestic violence and family protection law attended the five-day consultation.
Representatives from Fiji, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Island, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu shared their experiences and what they had learned from implementing their domestic violence and family protection laws.
