Rayleen was a young woman who left her family to be with the man she dearly loved. She married *Willy, and the couple had two beautiful children.
However, after years of marriage, things began to change in their relationship. Willy, once loving and kind, became controlling and aggressive. Rayleen started noticing that he was no longer the person she had fallen in love with. He began to question her over small household matters, and when he was not satisfied with her responses, he would lash out in anger.
Rayleen found herself living in fear – enduring constant sexual, physical, verbal and emotional abuse. Her home felt like a prison, with no freedom or affection.
On one occasion, Willy falsely accused her of having an affair with another man, leading to a terrifying escalation of violence. He tied her to the ceiling and abused her, leaving Rayleen in fear of her life. Fortunately, her sister found out about the violence and called police for urgent intervention. Rayleen was connected to the Family and Sexual Violence Unit (FSVU), and Willy was apprehended.
The FSVU referred Rayleen to Femili PNG for further support and interventions. Rayleen was assigned a case worker, who worked with her to progress her case. With the police’s assistance, Rayleen’s case successfully progressed to court. After a few weeks, both parties appeared in court. However, Willy’s medical condition meant that he could not comply with the court’s orders – and the court dismissed the case. The court also ordered the police to release Willy from his cell so that he could access medical care and take care of himself.
Whilst Willy was free from prison, he continued his verbal abuse towards Rayleen. For her safety, Femili PNG referred her to safe accommodation and assisted her in applying for an Interim Protection Order (IPO). Rayleen was grateful for the help; but while the case was on-going, her health was also deteriorating. Upon realising the extent of her health concerns, Rayleen’s Femili PNG caseworker quickly assisted her to a hospital where she was diagnosed with a serious medical condition and placed on treatment.
With assistance from Femili PNG and the police, the court successfully granted Rayleen’s IPO. The police served this IPO to Willy shortly after, however he decided not to appear in court on the IPO hearing day. He continued to issue threats to Rayleen, that made Rayleen unsafe and fear for her life and her 2 children. At this point, she realised that she was no longer safe, and given her life-threatening medical condition, she knew she needed people who would love and care for her and her children. Rayleen decided to return to her family, knowing they would provide the love and support she needed. After sharing her thoughts with her caseworker, she was assessed and qualified for repatriation assistance.
Rayleen’s Femili PNG caseworker helped her complete family tracing, gather her medical supplies, and accompanied her to her home village. Her biological parents, two children and sibling welcomed her at the airport with excitement, as police witnessed. Rayleen’s family was saddened to hear about her medical condition, but were overjoyed to see her again after some years. Femili PNG also supported Rayleen with a business startup kit to help her generate an income.
Rayleen is currently happy with her family and is improving from her medical condition.
In order to achieve best outcomes for survivors, Femili PNG works in collaboration with existing service providers to assist women like Rayleen, who are survivors of family and sexual violence, to receive the care, support and change they deserve.
Femili PNG acknowledges the valuable contribution of the Australian Government’s Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP) and FemiliPNG Australia to the Goroka Outpost. FemiliPNG Australia has committed five years of ANCP funding to supporting the Outpost. FY2024-25 is the fourth year of the project.
*Some details have been changed to protect the identity and privacy of the people involved.
