A 2-day workshop on Domestic and Sexual Violence was held
over the weekend for radio broadcasters of Samoa's national radio station, 2AP.
The project, led by the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology (MCIT)
in partnership with the Samoa Victim Support Group (SVSG) and the Spotlight Initiative,
aims at developing the capacity and confidence in broadcasters to interview survivors,
and be an effective communication platform for delivering key messages of "ending
violence" in Samoa.
Parallel to the workshop for broadcasters, a tailor-made training for the young survivors
of SVSG is also being rolled out. The merging of these key outputs will be opportunity to
air the voices of Survivors on Radio 2AP, in time for Samoa's participation in the global
16 Days of Activism against violence and abuse of women and children.
Principal Programmer-Producer of Radio 2AP Mauisiisii Leutu Mose said the program
has given her team a deeper understanding of Domestic and Sexual Violence, which is
a necessary precedence of being able to host public discussions and talk-back shows
on this delicate issue.
"It is a topic that we are always careful about because of the risks or harm that a story
might bring to the survivor;
"But this project allows us to work closely with survivors and firstly understand the
impacts and the 'Dos and Donts', before we venture into broadcasting the issue," said
Mauisiisii.
"We feel that we now have the confidence to speak about Domestic and Sexual
Violence; the difference between Triggers and Causes, Myths and Facts, the Cycle of
Violence as well as the Power and Control that is at the centre of abusive behaviour".
The Radio 2AP broadcasting team juggled their shift work to participate in the training
workshop conducted by Tuiloma Lemalu Sina Retzlaff of Pacific Global Solutions.
Tuiloma said the experience of broadcasters, being experts in their own field of
communication, and their working knowledge of community engagement, made it easier
to achieve the learning outcomes of the workshop.
"It was a blessing to work with highly experienced broadcasters, some with over 30
years experience in their field. As soon as they grasped the key elements such as the
'norms' that drive abusive behaviour; we saw vox pops, slogans, quirky short sayings
and key messages just flowing out from this team!"
The voices of SVSG Survivors will be recorded and aired on Radio 2AP this week, as
part of the MCIT's engagement in community messages during the globally
celebrated 16 Days of Activism to end all forms of abuse toward women and children.
The National Inquiry Report into Family Violence (NIRFV) conducted by the Office of the
Ombudsman National Human Rights Institute (NHRI) found that 20% of women
reported being raped in their lifetime while 10% reported being raped by a family
member.
"In cases of sexual violence on children and young girls many were victimized at home.
The pattern is one of worsening violence against children. Barely a day now passes
without a report of sexual violence or acts done on young girls at the hands of
perpetrators they know", said Samoa Ombudsman Maiava Iulai Toma in a statement.
"It needs to be made quite clear that responsibility for these hideous acts lie with the
perpetrators and should never be palmed off onto the victims of the crimes. No woman
or child wants to be sexually abused and the psychological and physical impact can be
devastating and lifelong. For the most part there is self-blame, shame, and guilt".
The NIFV confirmed increasing trends in the prevalence of family violence in Samoa
with 86% of women surveyed, declaring that they had been punched, kicked, slapped or
assaulted with an object by a spouse or other family member, while 87% reported to
have been subjected to emotional and verbal abuse as well as threats of violence.
The MCIT Radio 2AP Project is funded by the Spotlight Initiative through UNESCO,
working in close partnership with the only shelter available for survivors, the Samoa
Victim Support Group.