Father Becomes Victim Of Gender-Based Violence
Photo: Google Image
The most recent victims of gender-based violence to contact the Samoa Victim Support Group through the Helpline were a 50-year-old father and his five young children.
The father claims that after receiving a medical diagnosis, he was no longer able to work to support his family.
His 21-year-old eldest son got work nearby, earning the minimum pay necessary to provide for his siblings' daily necessities as well as his father's medication.
As soon as the wife started earning money, everything began to return to normal.
Sadly, the wife went to work and abandoned the family to marry another man. The y
ounger kids were upset because they missed their mother.
The sick and jobless father was forced to take his kids back to his village to start afresh.
The father made the Helpline call when he was settling in at his family's house to ask for food and clothing for his children at this time.
The family's primary provider, the eldest son, continued working irregular hours at his job.
The father and his five children were the victims of gender-based abuse, and their lives were badly ruined over night.
The children's mental wellbeing is a problem because they were relocated and forced to start over far from what they were accustomed to.
Being a child safety organization, SVSG promptly contacted its network of local village chiefs to offer the father and his kids the necessary support services.
Along with the local representatives from SVSG, SVSG had made sure that the father and his kids received food and clothing to sustain them throughout this time, which helped to advance the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG1: No Poverty) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) (SDG4: Gender Equality).
SVSG continues to support gender-based violence victims who had the bravery to come forward through the Helpline.
Thus, SVSG President Siliniu Lina Chang reminds the public that "gender-based violence does not discriminate.
People of all ages, genders, and nationalities are impacted.
The good news is that once we recognize and understand that it is not a private concern but rather a collective obligation, we can handle it.
The SVSG is a nonprofit organization that offers assistance and support to community members who are most in need and victims of gender-based violence.
With its free 24-hour helpline, the group provides a variety of services, such as counseling, legal advice, and emergency assistance.