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Source: ONE News -
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A self-defence programme which has seen thousands of young women trained in how to keep safe, now faces a fight to keep open.
Around five thousand school-aged girls go through the Girls' Self Defence Project each year. The students learn how to deal with being followed, being attacked and sexual harassment.
As recently as last month one young woman who had attended the lessons fended off a car full of males.
The girl's teacher Alison McPike attributes the skills the girl learnt in the programme to keeping her safe.
"She said to me if she hadn't done self defence she wouldn't have known what to do," said McPike.
But now the project faces closure with $400,000 of funding cut due to what the government calls financial restructuring.
Girls' Self Defence Project chairwoman Alison Broad said she is upset by the decision which will result in the end of the successful programme.
"It's just going to be a tragedy if girls in this country no longer have the opportunity to learn those skills," Broad said.
Eight thousand girls went through the programme last year and since it opened in 1996 around 77, 000 have been trained.
A letter was recently received by the providers saying that there is no longer any funding available for them, but Minister Tariana Turia said there is another pot of money the project can fight for.
"They are able to apply for the $2.8m that is being put into that pool," said Turia.
However Labour MP Jacinda Ardern says it makes no sense to make the project reapply for funding.
"There is no guarantee that the Girls' Self-Defence Project will
be eligible for the minister's new pot of funding," Ardern
said.
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