Intimate partner violence is a serious and widespread issue in Australia and around the world.
In several Pacific island countries, the prevalence of lifetime intimate partner violence is as high as one in two women, among the highest in the world, according to the World Health Organisation. *
It’s normalised in PNG. Papua New Guinea is one of the highest risks in domestic violence.Raphaela Baki-Kaore
Back home in Papua New Guinea, Raphaela Baki-Kaore was an elite sportsperson.
A former track and field athlete and national rugby player, she embraced the sport of boxing in her twenties.
Raphaela says despite her power and control in the boxing ring, at home she was unsafe.
Within that time of me being pregnant, he was abusing me.Raphaela Baki-Kaore
A recent Papua New Guinea government report found that 64 per cent of the 5000 PNG women surveyed had reported experiencing intimate partner violence in 2025.
Raphaela says she grew up with family violence around her. But it was her father’s advice that led to the end of her abusive relationship.
An Australian Institute of Health and Welfare survey in 2021-2022 of nearly 12,000 people showed 23% of women and 7.3% of men in the survey, have experienced physical and/or sexual violence from an intimate partner since the age of 15.
There’s no statistics on rates of domestic violence among the established Pacific diaspora living in Australia.
Suzanne Utai is a Queensland social worker and counsellor who works in the area of domestic violence both here in Australia and in the Pacific.
Utai says contributing drivers of household stress in Australia’s Pasifika community can be pressure to send money back to family in the islands and give to the Church.
She also says urbanisation and shifting gender roles can contribute to tensions in the household.
Women are working, holding jobs that men can’t hold.Suzanne Utai
Albert Tevita is a pastor at a church in Western Sydney.
A New Zealand born Samoan – he is also president of the Pacific Island Action Mt Druitt Network; an area that’s home to a big community of Pasifika people.
He's trying to encourage his community to talk about domestic violence and seek help.
When victims of domestic violence come to see him, he refers them to authorities and services. But he also works with perpetrators in programs designed to change men’s behaviour.
God speaks a lot on how to love and honour your wife.Albert Tevita
Life is looking up for Raphaela Baki-Kaore. She's broken the cycle of domestic violence and moved with her daughter to safety in Australia.
She’s now focused on coaching and empowering other women at her boxing gym in Melbourne.
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