Afereti’s tragic attack 121 is an excellent example of this. Afereti was not merely consuming alcohol on the day he killed his son, he was abusing it. In the hours leading up to his act of violence he consumed more than twice the New Zealand weekly recommended limit. That level of drinking is not normal, nor is it healthy. Alcohol abuse rather than alcohol use as a trigger for family violence is supported by national statistics, not just the case of Afereti. The SFHSS 2000 found that the partners of abused women are twice as likely to drink every day, rather than those who are not abused, suggesting once more that alcohol abuse is the trigger, more than alcohol use. This is supported by international research, which also provides helpful suggestions for approaches to limiting alcohol as a trigger for violence, which will be considered fully in Part V. “Heavy alcohol consumption is a clearly established risk factor for most forms of violence. A review of scientific studies published between 1950 and 2015 concluded that the price of alcohol, restricting the days of sales and limiting the clustering of alcohol retail outlets is all associated with a substantial reduction in the perpetration of interpersonal violence.” INSPIRE: 7 Strategies for Ending Violence Against Children, WHO, Inquiry document 48 These findings can certainly be applied to the Samoan context as one need only look at the statistics which show family violence prevalence by day of the week to see that Sundays, when the sale of alcohol is banned, is significantly lower than any other day. 122 “We need to look at the regulation of beer in Samoa. There needs to be something done. More often men are just drinking uncontrollably as there is nothing that regulates the sale of alcohol in Samoa.”123 Selesele Oto, Matai participant, Inquiry Public Hearings INQUIRY FINDING 43: Abuse of alcohol is a trigger for family violence and by addressing alcohol abuse and misuse the prevalence of violence generally in society can be reduced. The inter-connectedness of family violence also comes to the fore when considering family violence because heavy consumption of alcohol often leads to greater financial pressures within a family, the second of the triggers the Inquiry will consider. 121 Case Study 22. “Exploring violence against women and girls in Samoa.” Fallen Lizard Films (an analysis of data provided by MOP Policy & Planning Division and the Domestic Violence Unit). Document 117 Inquiry anthology. 123 The Samoa Law Reform Commission completed a review of Samoa’s alcohol laws and published a Final Report in 2016. The Alcohol Reform Final Report looked at regulating the availability of cheap liquor, alcohol content in liquor, alcohol advertising, as well as introduction of age limits for the consumption of alcohol among others. The Final Report resulted in an Alcohol Reform Bill which is currently being finalized before it is tabled in Parliament. Copy of the report found at: http://www.palemene.ws/new/wp-content/uploads/05.Annual%20Reports/LRC/LRC-Alcohol-Report-2015-2016-Eng.pdf. See also Samoa Observer. “AG Lemalu proceeds with Alcohol Control Bill.” (7 August 2017). Retrieved from http://www.samoaobserver.ws/en/07_08_2017/local/22988/AG-Lemalu-proceeds-with-Alcohol-Control-Bill.htm. 122