While an international campaign to end violence against women and girls is marked tomorrow, Saturday, November 25, Cook Islands Police concerns continue to focus on the sustained level of domestic violence incidents reported locally, each month.

White Ribbon Day – a movement initiated in the early 1990s in Canada – falls on Saturday, and this year, the global event will be marked by a special occasion at Terevete Park, in Avarua.

The fun, albeit underpinned by a serious message, will get underway at 4.30pm with entertainment and food stalls, organised by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and NGOs, and supported by the Police.

Police said domestic violence is one area of policing that reflects no discernible trend other than to remain at a consistent, unacceptable level.

Between 20-30 disputes are reported each month and of these, up to a quarter involve violence, such as assaults.

Last year, just over 26 per cent of the annual total of disputes involved physical violence, mainly against women.

Police said White Ribbon Day is a movement launched by men, and upon whom the responsibility rests to bring this violence to an end. Men throughout every community are called upon to take a stand and stop the abuse directed at women and girls.

The Saturday event – A Violence Free Cook Islands – will feature New Zealand-based Cook Islander Kalib Strickland aka DJ K-Swizz, fireworks, food stalls and interactive entertainment. DJ K-Swizz is the two-time winner of the DMC World Championships, a competition that’s been around for nearly 40 years and is held in high regard by competitors and enthusiasts alike.   

The White Ribbon Campaign (WRC) was formed by a group of men in Ontario, Canada in November 1991, as a response to the École Polytechnique massacre of female students in 1989.

It was a combined effort to raise awareness about the frequent occurrence of male violence against women, with the ribbon symbolising “the idea of men giving up their arms”.