|
THE Police Force has
condemned the increasing acts of violence against women and children and
has made a commitment to end the cancerous problem.
Acting police commissioner Tom Kulunga yesterday said the constabulary
had an established policy which deals with family and sexual violence.
“What is happening around the country is alarming. It shows an alarming
breakdown in values at all levels of societies in PNG,” Mr Kulunga said.
He said to assist minimise or end the problem members of the
constabulary were to strictly ensure that they:
*Respond to and record all complaints of
family and sexual violence;
*Thoroughly investigate complaints of family
and sexual violence;
*Treat family and sexual violence complaints
as criminal offences and not civil or family matters; and
*Follow proper investigations and upon
availability of evidence charge people regardless of their status in
societies.
“The constabulary stands committed and will do everything within its
powers to reduce the number of domestic or family and sexual violence
cases within the country,” he said.
“But the community also had an equal responsibility to end family and
sexual violence by reporting all instances of family and sexual violence
to the relevant authorities including police, refusing to accept
compensation as the only means to solve instances of family or sexual
violence and setting the right examples, especially at the leadership
level.
“Some people think that they can settle crime through the payment of
compensation. It is unfortunate that there was an equal number of people
who think that the payment of some form of compensation was enough,
regardless of the physical and mental injuries inflicted upon the victim
which in most instances are our mothers and sisters.”
Mr Kulunga, however, stressed that under no circumstance should
compensation be used to stop charges being laid or to stop prosecution
from proceeding.
“Compensation can only be considered when the court is sentencing
someone,” he said, and called on leaders at all sectors of the
community, including at the family level to be positive role models.
“How can we expect others to behave when we the leaders are doing all
the wrong things? Children, especially boys must grow up learning to
respect their mothers and sisters, and they can only learn that from
their fathers,” Mr Kulunga said.
 
|
