DOMESTIC VIOLENCE SICKENING: MANASSEH SOGAVARE
Manasseh Sogavare. Photo: Courtesy of Sydney Morning Herald.
Member of Parliament for East Choiseul, and Chairman of the Bills and Legislation Committee, Manasseh Sogavare has described the issue of Domestic Violence in Solomon Islands as sickening.
MP Sogavare made the statement when contributing to debate on the Family Protection Bill yesterday.
He said daily newspapers are only reporting on the cases that come before the court and are only a minor fraction of the number people who suffer at the hands of family members.
“Let me tell you Sir that only a minor fraction of the number of innocent and helpless people who suffer from the hands of the people they trust as members of their families. You read the headlines and you wonder whether Mr Speaker you are living in a country that boasts itself as more than 90 percent adherence of the Christian faith and the high morale principles that religion advances in this country.”
Under the Family Protection Bill, the penalty for committing domestic violence is $30,000 or a 3 year imprisonment term, or both.
Debate on the Bill concluded yesterday.
Parliament’s House Committee was still deliberating on the Bill when this bulletin first went to air.