The Office of the Public Prosecutor inaugurates the new Victim Support Centre
Port Vila, Vanuatu. The Office of the Public Prosecutor officially opened the Victim Support Office. Right Honorable Prime Minister, Bob Loughman cut the ribbon of the newly renovated office space, in the presence of Honorable Pierre Fournier - French Ambassador, UNDP Representative - Mr. Donald Wouloseje, Mr Josaia Naigulevu, Public Prosecutor, and Ms. Seman Naomi Dalesa - Director of the Department of Women’s Affairs (DWA).
The event also combined the launch of the Victim Support Manual, the Mutual Legal Assistance Manual, the Anti-Corruption Authority Investigator's Manual, and the Anti-Corruption Authority Database, a series of resources to support victims and respond to crime.
With the support of the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative, the Office of the Public Prosecutor (OPP) refurbished the Victims Support Office and built children’s playground to create safe spaces for women and child victims inside and within the precinct of the office.
The renovation has created a dedicated confidential office space to be used by victims of sexual gender-based violence (SGBV) for consultation and engagement with experts and service providers who include forensic medical clinicians, psychologists, police officers, and social welfare officers. In addition, the new Office combines a safe space where women can rest and nurse their babies, and a new children’s playground area.
Vanuatu has alarmingly high rates of violence against women by intimate partners as reported in the Vanuatu National Survey on Women’s Lives and Family Relationships undertaken in 2009 by the Vanuatu Women’s Centre in partnership with the Vanuatu National Statistics Office.
“With this new Victim Support Centre we are enabling women and children to exercise their right to access justice and fair treatment”, Josaia Naigulevu, Public Prosecutor, OPP.
“With this new Victim Support Centre we are enabling women and children to exercise their right to access justice and fair treatment”, said Josaia Naigulevu, Public Prosecutor, OPP. “Victims have rights, they are entitled to access the mechanisms of justice, and the OPP is designing services centered around the victim's needs to grant them proper access to resources. We are working across sectors and taking all possible measures to minimize inconvenience and create safe spaces where victims can be assisted and treated with compassion and respect for their dignity”, he concluded.
“With the upgrade of the Victim Support Centre, and the launch of the four key documents to support victims and respond to crime, we are strengthening an ecosystem of services and infrastructures working together to enable victims to access justice in safety and dignity”, Right Honorable Prime Minister, Bob Loughman.
“With the upgrade of the Victim Support Centre, and the launch of the four key documents to support victims and respond to crime, we are strengthening an ecosystem of services and infrastructures working together to enable victims to access justice in safety and dignity”, said Right Honorable Prime Minister, Bob Loughman. “We are moving forward toward the implementation of the National Sustainable Development Plan and Health Sector Strategy - for the achievement of a healthy, prosperous, and sustainable Vanuatu in which all people, especially women, children, young people, people with disabilities, and other vulnerable groups can exercise their rights, and achieve their full potential”, he concluded.
“Today, we are witnessing a concrete outcome of the European Union’s (EU) commitment to gender equality and the empowerment of women of all ages around the world.
"Through the Spotlight Initiative, the EU is investing in the future of Vanuatu and its people by tackling violence against women and girls”, said Mr. Pedro Velazquez, Acting Head of Cooperation at the Delegation of the European Union for the Pacific.
“Through the Spotlight Initiative, we are uprooting the causes of gender-based violence through a multi-sectoral approach, and in parallel responding to the immediate, concrete needs of victims. With the opening of the Victim Support Centre, we continue to support the Office of the Public Prosecutor, enabling victims to act upon their rights and pursue justice, leaving no one behind” Mr. Pedro Velazquez, Acting Head of Cooperation at the Delegation of the European Union for the Pacific.
“Through the Spotlight Initiative, we are uprooting the causes of gender-based violence through a multi-sectoral approach, and in parallel responding to the immediate, concrete needs of victims. Last year we saw the publication of Vanuatu’s National Standard Operating Procedures for the Clinical Management of Rape, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence. With the opening of the Victim Support Centre, we continue to support the Office of the Public Prosecutor, enabling victims to act upon their rights and pursue justice, leaving no one behind. We will carry on with the definition of the Victims Charter in the near future,” Mr. Velazquez concluded.
The UNDP Representative Yeme Workie added: “60% of women in a relationship experienced physical and/or sexual violence by their husband/partner in their lifetime, and the prevalence of sexual violence against girls under the age of 15 in Vanuatu is one of the highest in the world. According to the statistic, almost 1 in 3 women (30%) have been sexually abused before the age of 15 years”.
“Covid-19 pandemic has further exacerbated violence against women, as lockdowns have impeded movement and restricted access to critical life-saving services. The new Victim Support Centre will grant comfort, safety, and dignity to the women who come forward in their pursuit of justice, and this is crucial in Vanuatu, where women and children continue to face many barriers preventing them from accessing the formal justice system for domestic violence and ultimately, obtaining justice”, she concluded.
By Cristina Comunian
