One in every three women in Aotearoa has experienced physical or sexual violence; nevertheless, 90% of them are too scared to disclose it.
It's a similar tale for tamariki where there are 80,000 reports of child abuse each year.
The government is now taking action, launching Te Aorerekura, an action plan to end family and sexual violence, this morning.
Marama Davidson, the Minister for the Prevention of Family and Sexual Violence, says Te Aorerekura specifically focuses on primary prevention, preventing violence before it occurs, rather than the aftermath, as in the past.
“For the first time, we also bring together a shared understanding of the systemic drivers of violence and I'm really proud that all of that has come together in Te Aorerekura that I launched today,” she says.
First and foremost, according to Davidson, they want to improve how they interact with people who seek treatment, so that the system is held accountable for not causing additional harm or re-traumatising victims, and that they have responsibility for their own healing and restoration.
40 actions
“We also have a focus on the long term, well-being with healing and restoration as well.”
According to Davidson, the strategy also includes an action plan with 40 actions, “to increase and improve the capability and the capacity of our workforce everywhere,” which enables them to employ people with the right skill set.
“That is something that we have not got across the country right now. That is a priority in this strategy.”
According to Davidson, the bulk of the 40 actions in the action plan have already been addressed in current agency budgets, while some will require more funds, and they have been working on recommendations for the next two years for the Budget.
“Agencies have reprioritised and put their putea that they already have, to do things differently. The majority of the actions for the next two years are already taken care of.”