ROAD TRIP TO END VIOLENCE, STIGMA & DISCRIMINATION

Samoa Victim Support Group is on a Road Trip to raise awareness on the human rights issues such as violence, stigma and discminiation affecting the minority groups of women, girls, LGBT+, person with disability and the elderly in Samoa.
 
Starting in Savaii and working its way back to Upolu, the Road Trip will see an intersectional movement by SVSG, using the human rights based approach, and the gender equality approach, to empower these minority groups.  Through awareness raising and Open Days, the minority groups will learn to know and claim their rights, while increasing the ability and accountability of individuals and institutions who are responsible for respecting , protecting and fulfilling these rights.
 
The Road Trip will therefore see an intersectional movement that addresses the discrimination, stigmatization and gender based violence towards women, girls, and person with disability, as well as the same human rights issues faced by the LGBT+ community in Samoa.
 
According to the SVSG President Siliniu Lina Chang, “The Road Trip targets the grassroot community; gauging the support of village and church leaders to influence a change in mentality towards these minority groups, while encouraging them to speak out.”
 
The Road Trip is SVSG’s contribution to the combined work of the Regional Civil Societies Organization, coordinated by the Equality & Justice Alliance to make justice work better for marginalized women, girls and the LGBT+ people in the Pacific.  In 2019, Samoa Victim Support Group and the Samoa Fa’afafine Association together with local partners carried out the National Advocacy Campaign to end violence, stigma and discrimination.
 
The Equality & Justice Alliance is a consortium of 4 international non-governmental organisations in London namely the Sisters For Change, Kaleidoscope Trust, Human Dignity Trust and The Royal Commonwealth Society.