Domestic violence survivor Lydia Gah will share her story with the women of Weipa on Sunday in what will be a thought-provoking luncheon.

Ms Gah last year published a book titled Survive and Thrive, which documents her life and the violence she suffered at the hands of her former husband while living in PNG.

Following her divorce after a 12-year marriage, Ms Gah pursued her education and went on to become a counsellor and social worker.

She also established a charity that supports domestic violence victims in PNG after she emigrated to Australia in 2004.

But she has since turned to writing in the hope her words will both inspire other women to take action and inform a larger, much-needed conversation.

“I want to be the voice of the voiceless – the women who, for far too long, have kept quiet about their own ordeal,” she said.

“This is my greatest hope that Papua New Guinean women, Melanesian women, Australian women start the conversation about domestic violence.

“It’s not something we should keep quiet about, because the more we keep quiet about it, the more it will happen.”

Tickets quickly sold out for the International Women’s Day luncheon at the Albatross Bay Resort, with seats capped at 100 due to COVID restrictions.

This article appeared in Cape York Weekly, 1 March 2021.