“Sharing the Knowledge” - Pacific Prevention of Domestic Violence ...

Participating Countries
Kiribati
A Wife’s Perspective
Apprehensive but excited was the best way to describe Jo’s feelings
as she prepared to join Jim in Kiribati for the final week of his
deployment. Despite having seen many pictures of Jim’s previous
trips to Kiribati, she had no idea of what to expect or how she
could have input. By the time she had got their two boys (aged 14
and 16 years), organised, the food, the directions and timetable,
grandma and neighbours to check on the boys, ensure that the
five acres with sheep, dogs and cat were ok, she was ready to leave!
This is her account:
“Bonriki International Airport, Kiribati was amazing; the heat just
hit you like a blast from a massive blow heater. Walking across the
tarmac, I was scanning all these wonderful smiling faces peering
through the wire fence, hoping to see Jim standing there and
having this awful feeling because I couldn’t see him. The airport is far
from modern, just a large concrete shed to the side of the runway.
Believe me, what a feeling of relief when I saw Jim standing inside
waiting to meet me. My bags soon appeared on the concrete floor in
a big pile, then on through immigration, which is a table in the middle
of the shed and that’s it! No fuss – welcome to Kiribati! My first stop
in Kiribati was at the supermarket to stock up on biscuits and Milo for
the workshop the next day. Next stop Mary’s Motel, Jim’s home away
from home. The motel was basic, but clean and tidy and had all we
needed. I was grateful for the hot shower and the air conditioning.
The cleaners had been in while Jim was picking me up and the bed
was made with clean sheets and what made me smile was the towels
had been shaped into two kissing snakes holding a flower between
their lips; I could see the cleaners having a wee giggle as they made
them. I looked forward every day to seeing what they made next;
kissing swans, a Turtle, a hand bag with flowers in it – they were great!
Jo with children from school for the disabled.
I spent the next day at the
community workshop that Jim
was running. The participants
were mostly women from different
organisations in Kiribati, but
included four men and three Police
officers. Unfortunately the power Senior Sergeant James Sole
was out when we got there; a generator
was soon found so the workshop could get started. They were all
so welcoming and treated me like royalty. I believe they found it
interesting to see how Jim and I communicated and worked together.
Jim would involve me in the conversations and I was able to give
feedback to him as to whether the message was getting through and
a woman’s take on things. I was extremely proud of the respect that
my husband showed them personally, and their culture, and of the
great work he was doing.
Jim’s wife (Jo Sole) with Inspector Titan Toakai.
I spent the next two days helping at the School for Disabled. I was
made very welcome and I was grateful that I could help. Resources
are limited but the staff are wonderful and do the best that they
can with what they have. They have sixty children registered there
and about 12 staff members; some are teachers and some teacher
aids. The children are there from 9am to 2pm and have a range of
disabilities: deaf, blind, and intellectually and physically disabled.
The staff involve them in a range of activities to motivate and
encourage communication and extend them to their individual
capabilities. Seeing the smiles on the children’s faces when they
accomplish something we take for granted was a real reality check.
The closing of the community workshop was a real celebration
and something the participants take great pride in. They were each
awarded a certificate that I had the opportunity to hand out, and it
was wonderful to see how proud they were. They appoint a master
of ceremonies and basically they are the boss. The MC was a petite
Catholic Nun with a bubbly personality and she relished in her
position, making them all get up and dance with their certificates.
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