Safe house for violence victims lacks more spaces

THE Salvation Army is concerned about the limited space in a safe house catering for victims of family and sexual violence in Lae.
Major Giam Dengi raised the issue during the Femili PNG second anniversary last week.
Dengi told The National that many victims of family and sexual violence sought refuge at the safe house but there was only limited space available.
“The safe house has two bedrooms with a kitchen and a toilet. Therefore, many victims had to squeeze into a room and some sleep on the floors and corridors,” she said.
There are seven mothers and eight children residing in the safe house and Salvation Army is doing what it can to provide shelter and support for them.
She said family and sexual violence is a complicated problem and needs support from other partners.
“Apart from sheltering them, we also provide counselling and we thank Femili PNG for helping us address family and sexual violence in PNG,” she said.
Femili PNG operations manager Denga Ilave said everyone had a special role to play in addressing the issue of sexual violence.
“Thank you to all our partners for providing assistance in sheltering, counseling and looking after victims of family and sexual violence,” she said.