Top Up White Ribbon Funding Now
Top Up White Ribbon Funding Now
The government should never have allowed the White Ribbon campaign to end up cash-strapped – it needs to front up with money immediately, says New Zealand First.
“The Prime Minister is an ambassador for this vitally important anti-violence initiative, so White Ribbon should not be scratching around for funding this year,” says NZ First Leader and Northland Member of Parliament Winston Peters.
“It’s disappointing that the White Ribbon Trust could not rely on funding from Superu, formerly the Families Commission, because Superu had not committed transitional funding.
“Because of this, the White Ribbon Trust has to find up to $400,000, which is totally unacceptable.
“The government says it is working on a longer term family and sexual violence strategy and trying to fit White Ribbon into it, but that’s just an excuse.
“The White Ribbon Trust should have received transitional funding without any hiccups.
“Given Police Minister Judith Collins says family violence makes up 41 per cent of frontline police time one would think government funding for White Ribbon would be a logical step towards any prevention work.
“Cutting New Zealand’s high rate of violence against women is important and must be addressed seriously,” says Mr Peters.
ENDS