“More often, these victims think having their partners sent to jail is not the best option for their families,” Mitchell said during yesterday’s press conference.
She said most of the victims want their partners to stop the abuse but they don’t want them to go to jail so they are reluctant to go through the court process.
Mitchell said the victims need not just programs but a support system and a community that cares and listens to their issues.
“What’s important is that women who are victims of domestic violence can talk of what is going on and they can get support from the community because this is what they need,” she said.
October is 14th Annual CNMI Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Criminal Justice Planning Agency Executive Director Jerome Ierome at the same press conference said CJPA is making it possible to secure funds for the different programs that support victims of domestic violence.
“We work with Ayuda, a non-profit organization, and government agencies to try to reduce the numbers of victims of domestic violence,” Ierome said.
He added that CJPA is the administering agency that makes sure funding will be secured for various programs.
He added that the funding for the Office of Violence Against Women went up before but has gone down in the last two years.
“The funding that we get for these programs will depend on the federal government, but I guess we have enough for our current programs,” Ierome said.
Some of the Domestic Violence Awareness Month activities include information dissemination at the Thursday Street Market, presentations at the Pacific Islands Club and American Memorial Park, a softball goodwill tournament, a candlelight vigil and trophy presentations on Tinian, and a Halloween men’s walk/candlelight vigil at the Garapan Fishing Base on Oct. 31.
