Victim speaks out, efforts recognised

By TABITHA NERO
Strong united families are the foundation for a strong community. One woman who understands this very well is Veronica Simogun.
This simple woman from East Sepik, who helped more than 6, 000 families in her province deal with gender-based violence, is the first Papua New Guinean to be awarded the International Woman of Courage (IWC) from the US Secretary of State.
The National caught up with Simogun yesterday at Jackson International Airport when she returned and she shared some of her experiences, challenges and told of how she could continue to help women in her province.
“I was once a victim of gender-based violence and when I managed to get out of it, I realised that there were so many women going through the same thing,” Simogun said.
“That is why I’m so passionate about not only helping women in East Sepik, but hopefully to help other women in Papua New Guinea.”
Simogun said after her recovery from the violence she had faced, she registered with Family for Change Association (FCA) in 2015 and was based in Wewak, East Sepik.
After winning the award and returning from an eye-opening experience in the US, Simogun said she would like to work  with other women in East Sepik and in the country to address gender-based violence.
“I believe that gender issues arise between adults when they are not taught well from their early childhood to adulthood. It’s the learning part that makes them behave in such a manner – whether it be good or bad and it depends on how parents teach and mentor their children,” she said.
Simogun said FCA, funded by Oxfam International, was now focused on having programmes to achieve four objectives –  gender issues, HIV/AIDS and economical and intellectual empowerment.
Simogun received the International Woman of Courage award on March 25 in the US.
She said she was looking forward to working with other women in her community to help them get connected to other service providers in the US.