Men to fight violence

The Aboriginal Males Healing Centre will visit Newman this month to shed light on the high rate of family violence and mental health in the Pilbara.

The Sons of Fathers Family Violence and Sexual Abuse conference, to be hosted at the Mia Mia House in the Desert, on November 29 and 30, is the first in a series of conferences.

The conference aims to facilitate debate across various sectors to discuss new approaches to practice and challenge traditional boundaries associated with the topics.

AMHC chief executive and founder Devon Cuimara said the main objective of the conference was to provide opportunities for Aboriginal men to meet and discuss the current research in a centralised location.

“We need innovative and collaborative ideas to combat our use of violence against our women and the sexual abuse of our children in our communities,” he said.

“The Pilbara region is a very compact geographical region, well provided with conference facilities, making it a feasible location to hold inexpensive meetings.

“A key step in achieving new rehabilitative program development goals is to identify priorities based on both new and longstanding knowledge gaps, to help orient decision-making processes and the strategic allocation of limited funding.”

A number of key speakers, covering topics such as family violence, sexual abuse, and prevention strategies, will be take part in the program.