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Conversation instead of domestic violence

Conversation instead of domestic violence

 

Greenland is a part of the Danish kingdom and Greenland Police is a part of the Danish Police. According to the police, the prevalence of violence, homicide and sexual offenses is one of the biggest challenges for Greenland. The prevalence of violence is five times as high as in Denmark, and homicide and sexual offenses are 12 times more prevalent than in Denmark. Also, the risk of repeat domestic violence is great in families where there is no follow-up after the incident.

In the Greenlandic City of Sisimut the police have, as a pilot project, visited the family the day after the incident in order to tell the family about the observations they have made. During the visits the first purpose was to get a good understanding of what had taken place and of what exactly the nature of the problem was. Then it is discussed how to move on from the current situation and who needs what kind of help, and finally, the focus is on preventing a similar incident from occurring again.

Because the experience gained in this pilot phase, with revisiting the family and offering ‘conversation instead of domestic violence’, it was decided to expand this project to the whole of Greenland and furthermore, to have the police and the municipalities enter into a partnership to visit the family together the day after the incident. This approach was chosen because it has been a priority throughout the process to anchor the project in already existing local authorities and (human) resources, so as not to impose a procedure from the central to the local authorities, and risk violating institutions or cooperation already in place and functioning.

 

The project started in 2010 and is still running.
Last review: September 2017.

 

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