Tairāwhiti Abuse Intervention Network marks 30 years of tackling family violence in Gisborne

Key personnel behind the success of the Tairāwhiti Abuse Intervention Network, Kerry Proctor and Chris Bunyan, cut a cake commemorating 30 years of the organisation at a forum held at Waikanae Surf Life Saving Club. Bunyan said violence was everywhere, not just in lower socioeconomic parts of the country.

The Tairāwhiti Abuse Intervention Network has been celebrated for its 30 years of work in targeting family violence in the district.

Attendees at the Manaaki Tairāwhiti Evidence and Insights Forum 2025 held at Waikanae Surf Life Saving Club took time out for a ceremonial cake-cutting service to honour Tairāwhiti Abuse Intervention Network (Tain) and the many people behind the organisation.

The cake was cut by Tain chairman for 12 years, Chris Bunyan, and its first paid co-ordinator, Kerry Proctor.

Bunyan told the Gisborne Herald Tain had been “put on a pedestal for the work we have been doing”.

“The wonderful thing about this community is we can work together and break down barriers. We can work together and make thing happen and are able to protect people.”

Proctor said Bunyan, at the time a police officer, “came on board and was later followed by Principal Family Court Judge Peter Boshier (born and bred in Gisborne) and others”.

Proctor said Tain was not the first group of its kind, but was the first to come together with NGOs (non-governmental organisations) and statutory partners like the police and health services.

One of those is Barnardos, which has been working with Tain from its earliest days.

Wendy Miller, Barnardos’ Violence Free Tairawhiti Network/Tain co-ordinator, said “Together we are breaking down barriers and ensuring tamariki, rangatahi and whānau have the resources and strategies to thrive.

“We share the same vision of safer communities, where tamariki and whānau can thrive free of violence.”

Bunyan said the various groups it was involved with brought a positive vibe to Tain.

“Other communities were in turmoil and couldn’t sit around the table,” Bunyan said. “Tain was working because of a shared common aim of working to make victims safe, and from a police point of view, holding perpetrators accountable.”

Proctor said: “We needed to come together and have those discussions.”

Training was also important to prevent the cycle of abuse continuing into the next generation, she said.

An important moment for Tain was seeking assistance from the Family Justice Centre in California, which provided best-practice training, including two of its “key people” attending a Tairāwhiti conference run by Proctor.

The Americans spoke about the 10 prior warnings of victimology. There were 10 “high indicators” that allowed Tain staff to understand triggers and prior behaviour when forming safety plans for women and their tamariki.

“From Family Court Judge Boshier coming on board, we did strangulation training,” Proctor said.

The judge believed non-fatal strangulation was a well-known indicator of future serious family violence.

“We never knew what strangulation truly meant,” said Proctor.

Strangulation could take a victim close to the point of imminent death.

“A lot of men know this and know how to do it,” Bunyan said. “A victim would say they had been choked, but it’s strangulation. It’s a different and powerful tool.”

Proctor said at that stage, Tain had met many women who had been strangled.

“We didn’t understand the physiology of strangling and how close to death it was.”

Bunyan said he did not like New Zealand being referred to as the domestic capital of the world.

“I think the difference is New Zealand eventually embraced the campaign against domestic violence. We’re trying to front it face-on – people are getting involved."

Bunyan compared the situation to the United States.

There could be something happening “in a pocket, but not in the next state”.

Proctor said New Zealanders were acknowledging domestic violence and doing something about it.