Extremist link to domestic violence

We have the right to live our lives without fear.

Migrant women are facing the growing threat of violence from partners with links to extremist groups.

Shakti, a group offering support and advocacy to Middle Eastern, Asian and African women suffering domestic violence, began noticing the chilling trend last year.

Yesterday, the group held a meeting in Wellington to mark its 20-year anniversary, and included an abuse survivor, who spoke about her husband’s violence and death threats towards her and her family.

‘‘He knows people who can make people disappear,’’ said the woman, who asked not to be named because of fears for her safety.

‘‘I’m scared my children will be taken. We have the right to live our lives without fear.’’

It took her two years to gather the courage to call police. Eventually, she sought refuge in Shakti’s safe house in Wellington, and said her husband was forced to leave New Zealand.

However, she said he used his links with an extremist group to terrify and threaten those family members who remained in her home country.

Shakti was helping her seek protection status from Immigration New Zealand, which would allow her and her children to become permanent residents if successful.

Shakti operations manager Sarah Chin said migrant women in New Zealand faced a range of potential threats from their partners, including honour-based

Abuse survivor

killings, dowry demands, underage and forced marriages, and risks to their immigration status.

Additional dangers from spouses or partners with links to extremist groups emerged as a fresh problem last year, and included local ‘‘radicalisation’’ within New Zealand, she said.

It was extremely difficult for women in such situations to seek help.

‘‘It is an added layer for them. It’s very complex . . . And we know this is an issue that isn’t going away. Before they terrorise the public, the families are the first to suffer.’’

Domestic violence reports to Shakti had risen significantly since it started in 1995. There were 21,000 calls to its freephone number last year, more than double the previous year, she said.

She believed it was a result of increased reporting and rising numbers of immigrants, rather than rising violence.

Under New Zealand’s laws, partners of New Zealand citizens or residents could seek residency if a relationship ended because of domestic violence.

It applied to people who were unable to return home because of the effects of stigma, or because they would have independent financial support.

A special work visa could be granted for up to six months in cases of domestic violence.