Editorial: Let's beat the bash

Vigil for Jasmine Wilson at Whanganui's Majestic Square on Saturday, September 14.

COMMENT
Two young women have died in Whanganui in recent months. While the courts have yet to rule on the circumstances it is believed both deaths were violent.

The city rallied last month to remember Jasmine Wilson, to raise awareness of Women's Refuge and to denounce family violence.

Over the weekend police upgraded investigating the death of Feona Kotahi Marie McKay-Patea to a homicide investigation following the discovery of her body at a Lee St address last week.

McKay-Patea's aunt Kiritahi Firmin, founder of the Kimiora Trust which supports families affected by suicide and domestic violence, said her niece was the second Whanganui woman to die violently in the past four months.

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"We want to call out to our community to say this cannot happen, it's happening too many times, and we are not doing enough to stop it."

Website It's not OK is a community-driven behaviour change campaign to reduce family violence in New Zealand. Its goal is to change attitudes and behaviour that tolerate any kind of family violence.

Jasmine Tamara Wilson, 30, who died on August 2.

Feona Kotahi Marie McKay-Patea, 23.

Based on 2016 figures it says police investigated a family violence incident every five minutes. Worse still, 76 per cent of domestic violence went unreported.

There was a time when young men were raised never to hit a woman. To strike out violently against a person less physical than yourself is an anathema. And cowardly.
And yet family violence appears to becoming more prevalent.

It behoves us all to do our part to stamp out this insidious crime. Neighbours hear things, family members see things, medical professionals know the signs.

A call to police is not narking. If you suspect somebody is being harmed it's your duty as a decent citizen to speak out, and get the person being harmed the help they need.

Whanganui's welcome signs used to carry the message that family violence was not okay. It seems like a commonsense message but one that obviously has not gotten through.

RIP Jasmine and Feona.