This year, in a special gesture to the community spirit in Mangere, the launch of Teal Ribbon week was held at the Mangere Mall and featured Dr Pita Sharples, the Hon.

Paula Bennett and Local MP Sua William Sio, with effervescent Mayor Len Brown.

He emphasized that the Teal Ribbon campaign covers all types of Violence from Family Violence, Child Abuse, Partner Abuse and Elder Abuse by connecting families with their own local services.

Launched in 2007 by the South Auckland Family Violence Protection Network (SAFVPN), the Teal Ribbon campaign says ‘Choose to be Violence free.

It promotes family wellness, helping families or couples to operate in health ways, to work with their kids, make long-term changes and not just stop things but start something else and make it grow.

In contrast the ‘White Ribbon’ campaign sponsored by several government agencies is only concerned with violence by men against their female partners.

SAFVPN work with 160-plus local community groups in twelve districts from Botany to Pukekohe and they are desperately short of support groups to work with men. “The number of services available to work with men is almost zilch. There’s a big gap in services, not just here in Counties Manukau.”