watching their father verbally abuse their mother or their uncles’ fight to the point of hospitalization. They grow up having already learned that violence is an answer. Furthermore, as the nature of violence becomes worse and more prevalent, it is less shocking. It is therefore not reported in the national media unless it is truly shocking. During the Family Violence Workshop,71 Mata’afa Keni Lesa explained how they need to keep articles fresh and that there is a risk of readers becoming de-sensitized to family violence stories over time. Violence therefore starts to disappear out of view, unless it is extreme and once again goes unpunished. Over time what was once deemed extreme violence becomes the new normal, and so on. Below is an example of how shifting attitudes of this nature can easily happen over time if violence goes unpunished and perpetrators can act with impunity. The figures used are illustrative but the four bars depict how public attitudes towards violence could change over time. It shows how initially a society may predominantly reject all forms of family violence and condone physical discipline of children, but how over time can move towards a greater acceptance of more violent methods, until violence becomes the norm. Samoa may not have reached the final bar, entitled ‘the future’ yet, but if violence is allowed to continue unpunished it is an inevitability. How Family Violence Become Normal - An Example: Views of Family Violence Over Time (Population %) The Future Oppose all Family Violence Now Physical Discipline of Children and some Verbal shouting within relationships is OK Some hitting of partners plus all physical and verbal actions towards children is OK Over time All forms of violence are OK Initially 0 71 20 40 60 80 100 120 The purpose of the workshop was to inform and empower collaboration among all stakeholders, strengthen public awareness of the impact of violence on families and identify preventative measures that could be implemented by the Courts, Government, Development Partners and NGOs. The workshop was organised by the Ministry of Justice, Courts and Administration in partnership with UNICEF and was held 27-29 November 2017.