Editorial: Need to break cycle

It's always bad when police officers are attacked during the course of their duties.

The female officer who suffered a broken jaw and bruising after allegedly being kicked in the face during a struggle with a woman in Taupo at the weekend may well be lucky to not have suffered more serious injuries.

The domestic incident  shows how unpredictable and volatile these situations can be - when even victims turn on the police who show up to help them. It also highlights the potential danger police are in on a daily basis and the fact they should never be attending call-outs alone.

Police say alcohol was a factor in the weekend's alleged attack, which would have added further fuel to the unpredictability of the situation. There was also reported to be a child present.

Sadly, despite the long-running "It's Not Okay" national campaign, police are attending domestic disputes every day across the country.

It will never be totally stamped out and some may question the effectiveness of such campaigns but it's one of the few tools society has to try and break the cycle which domestic violence perpetuates.

It's little wonder children who grow up seeing their parents lashing out at their partners often become violent adults.

We learn so much from our parents and when physical force is their only point of reference, when the going gets tough or they feel cornered or angry, they don't know any other way to react.

We need to make sure that children taken out of abusive situations go through intensive "re-training" so that they learn violence is not the only answer.