A TEAM of three from Family Support Centre had just completed a three days gender based violence sensitization workshop for two Provinces, Temotu and Makira.
The three days program includes high school talks for senior forms, along with counselling and legal services for people in those two provinces who are not able to travel to Honiara to access these services.
The objective of the workshop was to engage influential people in the communities, especially police, teachers, church leaders, village chiefs, health workers and Government leaders to help and support women and girls who are victims or survivor of GBV & VAW within their provinces, communities, and institutions.
During the provincial tour, the team also paid courtesy visits to the provincial authorities.
In Temotu the team meets with the Temotu Premier, Honourable Buddley Soakifono and the Provincial Minister for Women, Stanley Tehi.
Mr Tehi who officially opened the Training had highlighted the significance of the workshop and mentioned that the time is attained toward the Provincial budget and Provincial 2015 work plan.
He urged all participants to make useful of those information acquired from the training for the development and the enhancement of their community, organization and the province as a whole by empowering and protecting women and girls from violence.
In Kira-Kira, Makira province, the Provincial Secretary Silas Sitai and Clement Touni, also assured the FSC Team of the support the province will render to implement programs to empower women and girls in their Province.
The highlight of the two provincial tours were the number of people who were able to access FSC’s mobile counselling and legal services.
About 16 people came forward for counselling and to seek legal advice. A similar mobile service was also carried out in the Central Islands province in 2013 where a total 18 people accessed the mobile services.
This indicates that there is a great need for such services to be made accessible to people living in the provinces.
FSC Management would like to sincerely thank the Regional Right Resource Team (RRRT), from the Secretariat of the South Pacific Community (SPC) for sponsoring these very important provincial tours made to the rural people who had benefitted not only awareness on the issues but also accessing FSC services.
FSC believed that to end or eliminate Domestic Violence in our country, there should be a substantial awareness raising sand trainings throughout the country, and it’s not only us to advocate to end all forms of violence, but rather it should be a collective approach that must be taken on board because e somebody’s life is every body’s business.