Category: Domestic Violence

A resource for judges in Australia that is designed to improve the understanding of family violence has been updated and dispels a number of myths about domestic violence that can impede justice and put women at risk.
It makes clears that victims of DV cannot always ‘just leave’ an abusive relationship, that physically separating will not always stop the violence and that attempts to control a partner can be as serious as physical violence.
“Although there is a widespread belief in the community that mothers frequently fabricate allegations to influence family law proceedings, the research to date indicates that it is more likely that they will be reluctant to raise allegations for fear of having their motives questioned, and that the making of false allegations is much less common than the problem of genuine victims who fail to report abuse, and the widespread false denials and minimisation of abuse by perpetrators,” the book reads.
Despite wanting to leave barriers that prevent victims from doing so include a lack of financial resources, concerns for the welfare of children, family and pets, disability, a lack of alternative, safe accommodation, inadequate formal support systems, religious and cultural beliefs and a fear of retaliation by the perpetrator.
“Research has shown that one of the most dangerous times for a victim is in the months after separation when the perpetrator may use a variety of tactics to reassert control over the victim.”
Research indicates that, predominantly, women are the victims and men are the perpetrators of this form of violence.
In 73% of female homicide cases, the current or intimate male partner is the perpetrator/offender.”
https://womensagenda.com.au/latest/eds-blog/myths-about-domestic-violence-debunked/

As a signatory to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), the Australian government is expected to present to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination every four years but the last time they presented was in 2010.
The Committee commended the apparent admission of various Australian governments at failings in the prevention of domestic violence, and reiterated that clearly, “something is not working properly.” But the commendations stopped there.
Given Australia’s global economic standing, the Committee was extremely concerned by cuts to women’s shelter services and the housing, financial and legal services upon which the most vulnerable women rely. The Committee criticised Australia for cutting specialised services designed to help women escape violence in the home and replacing them with mainstreamed services. The Committee considered it unreasonable to expect a woman who has been the victim of male violence to seek refuge at a shelter that now also serves men.
Committee expert Ruth Halperin-Kaddari asked about reduction in women’s access to justice due to “major cuts to legal aid across the board.” Quoting the 2014 Productivity Commission Inquiry she reminded us “women are more likely to experience unmet legal need than men, and that indigenous women are more at risk, and more legal need is unmet in rural, regional and remote areas.”
Committee’s Rapporteur for Australia Patricia Schulz was deeply critical of why the government had decided to merge the Family Court with the Federal Circuit Court before the results of the review they commissioned to ensure the family law system meets the contemporary needs of families and effectively addresses family violence and child abuse. She also expressed concern about the influence of false claims by the so called ‘Men’s Rights Activists’ on family law officers, policies and practice at the expense of the safety and protection of women and children in situations of domestic violence.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/the-feed/un-grills-australia-on-multiple-failures-to-protect-women-against-violence

Financial violence can happen to wealthy people, to people living comfortably and to very poor people. It has nothing to do with how much money is available, it’s about how money is used to control someone. A study by RMIT estimated that at least 16% of women and 7% of men in Australia were aware of having experienced financial violence.
Violence is not just physical assault. Violence is about power. That Andrew didn’t hit Emma does not mean he wasn’t violent, it just means he used financial and emotional violence to exert power over her. The result was the same. Emma was frightened, isolated, trapped in a relationship she wanted to leave and will spend years trying to recover.
Help is available to people suffering financial violence. The royal commission into family violence recognised the dangers of economic abuse and made recommendations to address it. Banks, essential services and financial advisers are doing more to support their employees to recognise and act on the signs, and improve how they respond to debts accrued in the context of family violence. But the most important step is for the victim themselves to understand it as abuse.
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/08/how-did-a-confident-successful-woman-become-a-poverty-stricken-recluse?

Four of the five lead stories on a major newspaper’s website related to women who had been killed in their homes.
A few days earlier I reeled over a damning and inexplicable report that a senior constable in Queensland accessed a confidential database and gave a violent man, convicted of domestic violence, who had threatened to kill his former wife and blow up their two children, his ex-wife’s address.
The policeman, who remains employed, texted the man and said “tell her you know where she lives and leave it at that”. She was forced into hiding and he is now on the run.
There has been a 68% rise in weekly contacts to the 1800RESPECT hotline since September 2017.
Longer term analysis shows that in the first three months of 2014 the service received almost 12,000 contacts compared to the first three months of 2018 when it received more than 28,000 contacts which represents a 133% increase.
But if the women making these calls can’t expect help, in the form of shelters and a sincere commitment from police at the very least, what hope is there?
https://womensagenda.com.au/latest/domestic-violence-national-horror-show/

A landmark study, conducted by Elizabeth McLindon from the University of Melbourne, has revealed 45 per cent of female healthcare workers – from allied health to nurses and doctors – have experienced domestic violence.
One in nine, by a partner, over the past 12 months.
It’s a huge surprise and it’s concerning, these are people at the forefront of responding to family violence in our community.”
Victorian Health Workers Union secretary, Diana Asmar, said the impacts of domestic violence could affect not only a victim’s personal life but their work prospects too.
She wants provisions, like 20 days of domestic violence leave, available to staff across the country.
https://www.sbs.com.au/news/almost-half-of-female-healthcare-workers-have-experienced-domestic-violence