Sergeant Gurpreet Arora
Auckland, December 26, 2020
Family Violence is a rising menace throughout the world and New Zealand is no exception.
Every three minutes or so, someone, somewhere in this country is harmed and the Police field calls about this problem more than anything else.
The government enforced the Family Violence Act 2018 on July 1, 2019, redefining Family Violence with provisions for pressing criminal charges and prosecution of perpetrators and swift carriage of justice. But it does not go far enough to address the real problem: Supporting victims in culturally enclosed communities; and victims who ensnared by the very system that intends to protect them. There is therefore a need for organisations that understand female victims (who are by far a majority), helps them to seek palliatives from their despicable predicaments and enable them to become economically and emotionally independent.
Following the general election on October 17, 2020, the new government has created a new Ministry called, ‘Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence’ to tackle the problem.
Changing force of Law
Closer attention by the forces of law and order would see a decline in family violence worldwide. Over the past few years, coppers in almost every country have abandoned what is known as ‘the tea and sympathy approach’ to abuse. These days, the Police treat violent partners in much the same way as the American authorities treated Al Capone: “If we can’t get him for beating up his wife, what else can we get him for?”
We should not underplay the importance of introducing tougher laws to bring the perpetrators to justice. For, what is a society if it features homes that are less safe than public places, say a pub, where brawls are common?
We certainly do not want our homes to become watering holes with fountains of violence erupting beer after beer. We would like to see organisations such as those mentioned above to be well-funded and strengthened to service our communities better.
Increasing awareness
We have created a short, 45-second video with the purpose of increasing family harm awareness amongst Ethnic communities. It is now up and running on various Police Facebook pages.
Auckland City District Police:
https://www.facebook.com/253246131445066/videos/304902884228532/
Counties Manukau District Police:
https://www.facebook.com/321854097847023/videos/304895604229260/
North Shore, Rodney & West Auckland Police:
https://www.facebook.com/399203326785197/videos/304903287561825/
Sergeant Gurpreet Arora is Family Harm Partnership Liaison Officer at Whangaia Nga Pa Harakeke based in the Counties Manukau District Police.
Our Staff Reporter adds:
About Gandhi Nivas
Although there are some organisations that cater to the needs of women and children, there was a need to shift focus on involving men in prevention strategies. Services of these organisations are usually provided during the working week (Monday to Friday) hours, while most incidents occur in the evenings and on weekends.
Gandhi Nivas is a round-the-clock, round-the-year facility and is governed by a board.
Gandhi Nivas is a partnership between Serenity Foundation, New Zealand Police and Sahaayta Counselling and Social Support. The Partnership was established in 2014, using a Lotteries Commission grant and funding from Total Healthcare PHO and other private funders.
The concept grew from discussions between Counties Manukau Police and its South Asian Police Advisory Board with the objective of providing early intervention and prevention services to people identified as at the risk of committing family violence to help them change their behaviour, reduce the likelihood of further family harm and increase safety for families.
Progress of the Initiative
Gandhi Nivas is partially funded by ACC. It provides emergency housing and counselling to men who have been issued with a Police Safety Order (PSO) following an act of family harm. Participating agencies describe the initiative as innovative and ground-breaking.
“Once a man is issued with a PSO, he must leave the family home for a set period of time. It is at this point that some men are taken by Police to one of three Gandhi Nivas homes in Ōtāhuhu, Te Atatu and Papakura. This immediately decreases the likelihood of further family harm, increases safety for the family, and provides the offender with an opportunity to begin the process of behavioural change,” said a Massey University Report released at a special event held in the Executive Hall of Parliament on June 30, 2020.
The above Report has been sponsored by
