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A tragedy behind closed doors
Millions of children across the Pacific are experiencing high levels of domestic violence, including in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. For the vast majority of children, this violence is happening in a place where they should feel safest: their homes and communities.
By ChildFund Australia
The following story contains content that may be distressing for some readers.
Elizabeth* is four years old but she already bears the painful scars of abuse that far too many people experience in life.
Elizabeth is from a poor community in Papua New Guinea, where domestic violence – mainly against women and children – is common in families and households. For months, Elizabeth, was physically abused by one of the people who should have loved her most – her father.
Elizabeth had been left in the care of her father when her mother needed to move far away for work.
It was about a year after Elizabeth had moved in with her father when her aunt, Maggie*, discovered the abuse. Elizabeth’s father had sent images of the abuse to Elizabeth’s mother, threatening to kill her and Elizabeth.
Maggie* was terrified for Elizabeth’s life. She had learnt about a phone counselling service for survivors of violence, the 1-Tok Kaunselin Helpim Lain, through a text message campaign, and called the helpline.
Maggie shared her story and fears with a helpline counsellor, who provided her with support and reported Elizabeth’s case to police, and welfare and child protection services.
The counsellor helped Maggie access emergency funds so that Elizabeth could be removed from her father as soon as possible and move into a safe place with Maggie.
Today, Elizabeth is living with her mother again. Elizabeth’s father has been charged, and Elizabeth and her mother have protection orders in place.
Maggie has been in touch with the helpline counsellors, providing them with updates on Elizabeth’s wellbeing. She said Elizabeth and her mother were both safe and living at peace. All this would not have been possible, Maggie said, without the support of the counsellors and emergency funds that were secured through the 1-Tok Kaunselin Helpim Lain service.
*Names have been changed to protect individuals’ identities.
‘Our mothers, sisters, daughters and wives are suffering from a weak protection system’
Millions of children like Elizabeth across the Pacific, including Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, where ChildFund works, are experiencing high levels of domestic violence including physical, emotional and sexual abuse, as well as neglect. For the vast majority of children, this violence is happening in a place where they should feel safest: their homes and communities.
With the COVID-19 pandemic, reports of domestic violence increased around the world along with social isolation, unemployment and alcohol use.
In Papua New Guinea, more than 2 in 3 women and girls experience some form of physical or sexual violence in their lifetime.
Ivodia Malio, a Senior Counsellor with the 1-Tok Kaunselin Helpim Lain, said the rates of violence in Papua New Guinea were “concerning”.
“There is a great need for family and sexual violence services to work together to develop better strategies to address the high rates of violence in the country,” she said.
“The 1-Tok Kaunselin Helpim Lain is doing great work to assist vulnerable women and children to be safe. Perpetrators are also calling the helpline for support to change their abusive and violent behaviours.”
Ivodia’s colleague and fellow helpline counsellor, Simon Karapus, said domestic violence services in Papua New Guinea needed to be overhauled and strengthened: “Our mothers, sisters, daughters and wives are suffering from a weak protection system,” he said.
The 1-Tok Kaunselin Helpim Lain is the first toll-free helpline for survivors and perpetrators of violence in PNG. It was established in 2015 by ChildFund and local partners in response to PNG’s high rates of violence.
Helpline counsellors have received more than 50,000 calls since the service was launched in 2015. The success of the helpline has led to ChildFund supporting a similar crisis counselling service in the Solomon Islands.
In the Solomon Islands, 2 in 3 women between the ages of 15 and 49 have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner. More than a third of these women experienced sexual abuse as a child.
The success of the 1-Tok Kaunselin Helpim Lain service in Papua New Guinea has led to ChildFund supporting a similar crisis helpline in the Solomon Islands.
How your donation can protect children from domestic violence
Ensuring children are safe and free from domestic violence is a collaborative effort between development organisations such as ChildFund, and children, their communities, and local governments.
With your help, vulnerable children and their families can access the immediate and long-term support they need to be safe. ChildFund is working with local partners to provide not only services such as crisis counselling and referrals to safe houses, we are also working with governments and communities to strengthen child protection systems. Your donation will also help educate and empower young people to raise awareness and lead advocacy activities in their communities that focus on peace promotion, conflict prevention, and respectful relationships.
Helplines and counsellors: Train and upskill counsellors for Papua New Guinea’s 1-Tok Kaunselin Helpim Lain service, which provides immediate and long-term support to survivors of violence.
Youth Peace & Protection Champions: Educate and empower young people to raise awareness and lead advocacy activities in their communities that focus on preventing and resolving conflicts peacefully, prevention of violence, and respectful relationships.
Child protection frontline workers: Train social workers, counsellors, village court officials, and staff at safe shelters and family support centres, on women’s and children’s rights, and case management.
Emily Chancellor is thrilled to be stepping back out onto the international rugby stage with the Wallaroos for the Rugby Women’s World Cup 2021, being played in New Zealand in November 2022.
After a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Wallaroos are back to a full-time training schedule. “It’s nice to be back together as a team, good to be back out on the paddock and blow off some cobwebs,” said Emily.
A fierce competitor on the field, Emily is just as passionate about achieving gender equality for girls and women through sport. She believes that children and young people can overcome gender disparities by learning to play rugby and that, with the right support, women and girls can break free from social gender stereotypes.
Emily Chancellor at practice.
“I got an opportunity to go to Laos with ChildFund Rugby, formerly known as ChildFund Pass it Back. It was such an incredible experience to see boys and girls playing rugby for the joy of the game and from any predisposed ideas about gender or biases – but purely for the game and the love of it.”
ChildFund Rugby promotes the right for children and young people to play and learn in their community. The project builds an environment where participants can develop vital life skills, take part in health and education project, and promotes gender equality.
During her time in Laos, Emily was able to experience firsthand the positive impact that playing rugby can have on a child or young person.
“The project builds not only rugby and social skills but builds on education and important health messages that they can teach as well as educating boys and girls on how to be coaches. It’s such a great project and I was so lucky to see and be reminded that rugby is fun.”
Young women who take part in the project have gone onto to become coaches themselves. Through these leadership opportunities, their confidence and leadership skills soar, and they often become respected community leaders and decision-makers.
Emily shares that in countries like Laos, there are limited leadership opportunities for women, and this makes breaking away from social gender norms very difficult.
“There’s some incredible young girls and women I’ve worked with in Laos. I think for so many people have seen a pathway for women in the rugby world. It’s opened an international connection.”
Aside from promoting gender equality, Emily also says that the project is the reason that many children are excited about going to school in the morning.
“It’s a purpose, it’s a reason to come to school. It’s a reason to run around and make friends. It’s a way of bringing developing countries into opportunities that say women have a right to a job and an education and I think that’s really exciting!”
Emily is proud to be advocating for gender equality and girls in sport ahead of the 2021 Women’s Rugby World Cup.
If you’d like the opportunity to meet Emily Chancellor, join us for the ChildFund Rugby Long Lunch – hosted by ChildFund Australia on Friday 9 September 2022.
ChildFund is delighted to be the first ever Principal Charity Partner for the Rugby World Cup 2021, taking place in New Zealand in October.
Following a hugely successful partnership for the Rugby World Cup 2019 in Japan where rugby fans and commercial partners around the globe pledged more than $3.5 million, ChildFund is delighted to share our appointment as the first ever Principal Charity Partner for the Rugby World Cup 2021, taking place in New Zealand in October. We are particularly honoured to be supporting global efforts to encourage and advocate for women’s participation in sports through this partnership, alongside promoting sport as a means of empowerment, community, and development.
Funds raised from this event and the Rugby World Cup partnership will go towards supporting more women and girls from vulnerable communities, creating strong, collaborative women’s rugby networks in different countries, and building effective pathways for women’s involvement at all levels of the game.
