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tag:theconversation.com,2011:/au/topics/domestic-violence-1115/articles Domestic violence – The Conversation 2019-05-16T06:38:21Z tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/116597 2019-05-16T06:38:21Z 2019-05-16T06:38:21Z An innovative way to counter domestic violence: provide housing for abusers

A new program in South Australia would offer housing for the perpetrators of domestic violence, allowing their victims to stay in the family home. Shutterstock

Domestic and family violence has devastating impacts on the physical, social, material and psychological well-being of women and children.

But the ramifications of abuse go beyond this – research has also established that domestic violence is a leading cause of homelessness among women and children, as victims fleeing abusive situations often have nowhere to go. Women's crisis accommodation services are nearly always full. And many victims can't rely on their social networks, as they've been eroded over time due to domestic violence.

   Read more: After a deadly month for domestic violence, the message doesn't appear to be getting through

Now, the South Australia government is trying a new approach. The government recently announced funding to trial a new program that will provide accommodation, support services, and behaviour and attitudinal change interventions for the perpetrators of domestic and family violence – enabling women and children to remain in the family home.

Already, A$4 million has been allocated for shelter accommodation in South Australia for women and children, with a small proportion to be set aside for perpetrators. It is not clear yet how men will enter these shelters (mandated or voluntarily), but once there, the plan is to connect them with the support needed to properly address their abusive behaviour.

This is a rare approach to the complicated issue of how best to respond to domestic and family violence.

Why women and children leave their homes

The National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children (2010-2022) emphasises the need to hold perpetrators accountable for their actions through laws and policing, as well as interventions to force them to confront their use of violence in intimate partner relationships.

In practical terms, responses to domestic and family violence have tended to focus on victims. Government support services, for instance, typically include providing emergency and short-term accommodation for victims and safety planning (helping victims learn to be safe while living with violence).

As a result, ensuring the well-being of victims has largely focused on removing women and children from abusive situations in their family homes. This is problematic, though: it disrupts their lives and routines at a time when stability is most needed.

However, a few programs, including the trial in SA, are attempting to flip this response, asking the perpetrators – not victims - to leave the family home.

Most jurisdictions in Australia have implemented the Safe at Home program, which is a first step in this direction. This supports victims of domestic and family violence to stay at home by using legal means – exclusion clauses and protection orders – to keep perpetrators out.

But this program does not factor in the perpetrators' accommodation needs or offer support to help them rehabilitate or change their violent behaviours. The only option available to perpetrators is a referral to a 12-week "behaviour change program", which vary greatly in terms of success rates.

A new approach, but questions remain

Where the SA trial is different is that it seeks to remove perpetrators from the family home by offering them accommodation, as well as therapy and support services.

There are a very small number of similar programs in Australia, including Communicare Breathing Space in Western Australia and Room 4 Change in the ACT. These programs offer accommodation, individual counselling and group programs. Research on the efficacy of these programs is still needed, however.

   Read more: How domestic violence affects women's mental health

The details of the SA trial have yet to be released. Nonetheless, early indications suggest it will provide both accommodation and intensive support for perpetrators, which is why it shows such promise. However, the devil really is in the detail. Paying close attention to the following elements will be critical to the success of this initiative.

Prioritising women and children's safety is non-negotiable. Removing a perpetrator from a home does not guarantee an end to violence. On-going safety planning, risk assessments and protection orders must be implemented to minimise the threat of further violence.

Women's and children's needs for support and counselling must be met. Domestic violence creates financial, physical and psychological issues that continue after the immediate threat of violence has ended. The already-limited funding for services must not be eroded.

Accommodation must connect men to case management and therapeutic intervention programs. Case management is vital to address complex issues such as alcohol and drug use and mental and physical health, which can contribute to domestic and family violence. The accessibility of long-term therapy that is grounded in a gendered analysis of power is also necessary to drive behavioural and attitudinal change.

Rigorous evaluation must also be built into the design of the trial. We are still developing the evidence base for what works to stop domestic and family violence. Change will not come through one program, or a single type of support.

Turning attention to perpetrators of domestic violence is a welcome political and policy initiative. However, the need to balance protection and accountability requires an integrated and well-funded approach. Housing is a first, not last step in achieving this change.

Sarah Wendt receives funding from Australian National Research Organisation for Women's Safety (ANROWS) and Department of Human Services South Australia. She is affiliated with Women's Safety Services South Australia, and the Australian Research Council.

Kate Seymour receives funding from Australian National Reseach Organisation for Women's Safety (ANROWS) and the Department of Human Services, South Australia.

Kristin Natalier receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Department of Human Services South Australia.
 The SA government is trialling a new program that will provide accommodation and support services to the perpetrators of domestic violence – enabling women and children to remain in the family home. Sarah Wendt, Professor of Social Work, Flinders University Kate Seymour, Senior Lecturer (Social Work) Kristin Natalier, Associate Professor in Sociology, Flinders University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/116800 2019-05-10T06:29:00Z 2019-05-10T06:29:00Z New laws in Western Australia will help victims of family violence end their tenancies

The WA legislation draws heavily on Canadian and US models. Shutterstock

New laws in Western Australia will make it easier for people escaping family violence to "break" their leases.

The laws are "unashamedly victim-focused" – the latest development in a legal shift across Australia that seeks to alleviate the legal and financial barriers to leaving an abusive household. The WA legislation draws heavily on Canadian and US models to make the process of leaving timely and more efficient.

Under traditional laws, joint tenants are equally liable for lease expenses. If a lease is terminated early, the tenants remain responsible for expenses – including rent. Failure to comply has serious consequences, including the loss of a security deposit (often essential to find new accommodation) and "black-listing" on a tenancy database.

This places a person experiencing family violence in a vulnerable position if they need to leave. To stay is unsafe, but a victim may be unable to find a new, affordable home without being burdened by expenses arising from the previous lease.

   Read more: Why doesn't she just leave? The realities of escaping domestic violence

What the new laws do

Here's what the new laws mean for people experiencing family violence in Western Australia.

Reduced notice period

Under the legislation, tenants can end a tenancy directly with the landlord or agent with seven days' notice. They need to provide a termination notice, along with evidence that the circumstances involve family violence.

This development is significant because, unlike in most other states and territories, a person experiencing family violence won't necessarily have to navigate law enforcement or the court system before they can leave.

Evidence might take the form of a court order, but it could also be a declaration signed by a medical professional or other independent third party to confirm that the lease is being terminated because of family violence. A broad range of people can make the declaration, including police, psychologists, social workers or people in charge of refuges. This means the evidence can be obtained in a timely and uncomplicated way.

The tenant may leave immediately for safety, although is responsible for the rent until the end of the seven-day notice period. This means the lease can be terminated quickly and cleanly with less financial burden than there would be in the case of the usual notice period.

Fast dispute resolution

The legislation also provides an efficient system to address disputes about unpaid rent, property damage and the disbursement of the security bond. The aim of the provisions is to allow for financial issues to be resolved quickly and ease the victim's pathway out of the lease. For example, a victim will not be responsible to pay for any damage caused by the perpetrator.

   Read more: How housing affordability hurts women and kids fleeing violence

Removal of perpetrator from lease

Should the tenant choose to do so, the legislation allows a tenant to stay in the rented premises, but remove the perpetrator from the lease by application to the Magistrates Court.

If children are in school in the local area, for example, it's best for a tenant to be able to remain in the rented premises. The court may make an order terminating the perpetrator's interest in the lease after considering matters such as the best interests of any child living on the premises, or the effect the order might have on any pets kept on the premises.

Permission to install extra security

A tenant can change or add locks and security devices without the landlord's permission if the tenant believes, on reasonable grounds, that an act of violence is likely to be committed against them or any of their dependants.

This is an important development because, although some jurisdictions permit this in an emergency, generally residential tenancy laws require that a tenant must obtain the permission of the landlord prior to making any alteration. That included for locks, alarms and security screens. In some cases, there is an unacceptable, and dangerous delay in obtaining consent and enhancing security.

Legislation can be beneficial to landlords too

The new laws draw heavily on models from the US and, in particular Canada. Indeed, the WA provisions are modelled on those operating in Alberta and, although controversial to some, do not go as far as those in some jurisdictions. In Ontario, for example, a lease can be terminated through the use of an online form and a tenant's statement about sexual or domestic violence.

Obviously, these amendments have concerned landlord and real estate representatives because of the potential to "use" the new laws as an excuse to break leases and disadvantage landlords. But evidence suggests that this type of legislation can actually be beneficial to landlords.

In Canadian provinces such as Alberta, where similar legislation has been operating for several years, there has been little to no evidence of the provisions being misused. And, in comparison to the expense of having to go through a court or tribunal process to terminate the lease in the usual way, the new process is more efficient and cost effective for the landlord.

The landlord has the certainty of knowing that the lease will be terminated in seven days, there is less risk of damage to the premises, and the property can be advertised promptly (rather than wait for court or abandonment processes). Of course, in a slow rental market there may be a delay in finding a new tenant, but, on balance, the process is likely to be beneficial to both the tenant and the landlord.

   Read more: After a deadly month for domestic violence, the message doesn't appear to be getting through

The scourge of family violence touches many. Although all Australian states and territories have introduced some measures to alleviate the difficulties faced by a person wanting to end a lease because of family violence, the Western Australian provisions provide an example of best practice in balancing safety, efficiency and the interests of both tenant and landlord.

Eileen Webb receives funding from AHURI, OFAW and DSS. She is a foundation member of the Australian Research Network on Law and Ageing (ARNLA) and an Academic Member of the Law Reform Commission of Western Australia.
 Western Australia is leading a legal shift across Australia that seeks to remove the legal and financial barriers that prevent women from leaving an abusive household. Eileen Webb, Professor, School of Law, The University of South Australia; Adjunct Professor, Curtin Law School, University of South Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/115423 2019-05-01T10:43:27Z 2019-05-01T10:43:27Z Why abusive husbands kick dogs but angry neighbors poison them

Breaking down the numbers on animal neglect. Sergio Foto/shutterstock.com

Volunteering with animal rescue and shelter organizations in Detroit brought me face to face with many manifestations of animal cruelty: dogs left outside and frozen in their yards; dogs with chain link collars embedded in their necks; cats that had gaping wounds full of maggots as the result of being doused with acid; and dogs used for dog fighting.

I never forgot these sights. They led me, an urban studies researcher, to question the potential causes of animal cruelty and what might be done about it from a public policy standpoint.

To explore this, I examined animal cruelty in the city of Detroit. My research shows that animal cruelty is tightly connected to human relationships, but in complex ways.

That suggests that governments need different policies targeted to specific forms of cruelty and the types of human relationships behind them. Counter to the one-size-fits-all laws and punishments that restrict particular breeds of dogs or prohibit animals in domestic violence shelters, efforts to reduce animal cruelty must be flexible and multi-pronged.

Who abuses animals

Animal welfare in Detroit is exacerbated by several interconnected factors, including economic distress, home vacancy and a high crime rate.

In 2008, bite-related emergency room visits in the Detroit area were almost four times the rates for urban areas nationwide. Estimates of stray and feral dogs in Detroit range from 3,000 to 50,000, putting extreme pressure on animal welfare resources.

I looked at all 302 animal cruelty police reports between 2007 and 2015. Some of the most frequent types of animal cruelty in Detroit were shooting, kicking and blunt force trauma, neglect and dog fighting.

These patterns differ from those in other cities, where neglect – meaning the restriction of movement, lack of food, water and veterinary care – and abandonment are the most common forms of cruelty.

Owners perpetrated one out of five cruelty incidents. Neighbors and domestic or other intimate partners were the next most likely to inflict harm, followed by family members, a person the owner had a conflict with and a stranger.

Owners are significantly more likely to engage in dog fighting as a form of cruelty. There is widespread dog fighting in Detroit, with the majority of residents, even children, likely to have seen or known about a dog fight. Neglect is also significantly more likely to occur at the hands of owners.

Meanwhile, unknown individuals are significantly more likely to shoot an animal. Romantic partners are significantly more likely to kick or hit, family members more likely to stab and neighbors more likely to poison an animal.

My statistical analysis suggests that the younger an adult is, the more likely they are to engage in dog fighting. Gender and race are not significantly correlated with any of the types of cruelty.

Tailored solutions

My findings suggest how policymakers could try to reduce various types of animal cruelty. The specific step that a policymaker might take depends on the type of cruelty.

For example, dog fighting is closely tied to other criminal acts, primarily drug use, and involves dogs that are owned by the perpetrator. Interpersonal relationships do not need to be considered in the prevention of such cruelty. Rather, animal cruelty experts recommend police crackdowns on fighting and breeding operations, as well as general drug and weapons possession and sales, to combat this type of animal cruelty.

Passive animal cruelty in the form of neglect is most commonly perpetrated by the animals' owners. Neglect is likely related to lack of knowledge about appropriate animal care and potentially to a lack of resources. School education programs have been found to increase kids' and parents' general knowledge about the needs of animals. There are a variety of nonprofit organizations that provide low-cost food, medications and spay and neutering services to the city's animals.

Increased enforcement of city ordinances regulating barking dogs and dogs off leash could decrease the kinds of animal nuisance behaviors that appear to lead neighbors to poison animals.

Connection to domestic violence

But what about other forms of cruelty, such as stabbing, kicking and blunt force injuries? These appear linked to the same aggression that also motivates assault, domestic violence, and intimidation and harassment.

Between 47% and 71% of women in domestic violence shelters report that their partners abused or threatened their pets. This threat also serves to keep women in abusive relationships; 40% of women said that they delayed leaving an abuser out of concern for the safety of their pets.

There is a prevalence of animal cruelty in domestic violence offenders; 41% of men arrested for domestic violence admitted to committing animal cruelty as adults. Just 1.5% of the general population said the same.

To reduce the risks to animal companions, it seems critical for the person who's being abused to leave their abusive relationship and get their animals to safety at the same time. A variety of animal shelters have begun programs where the pets of abuse victims can stay temporarily. Domestic violence shelters are also beginning to include facilities that allow families to bring their pets with them.

These policies show how some groups are starting to recognize the meaningful and complex role that human relationships play in animal cruelty.

Laura A. Reese receives funding from The Stanton Foundation
 Examining 302 police reports in Detroit, a new study shows that animal cruelty is tightly connected to human relationships. Laura A. Reese, Professor of Political Science and Director of Global Urban Studies Program, Michigan State University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/114817 2019-04-30T01:45:10Z 2019-04-30T01:45:10Z It's time 'coercive control' was made illegal in Australia

Many behaviours associated with coercive control are not yet criminal in Australia, even though the impact on victims is profound. Shutterstock

In the past few years, most parts of the United Kingdom and Ireland have introduced new legislation making it a crime to engage in what's known as "coercive control" towards an intimate partner.

Yet, with the exception of some laws that came into effect a decade earlier in Tasmania, no Australian state has yet to follow suit. It's time for that to change.

What is coercive control?

England and Wales were first to outlaw coercive control in 2015, in a statute that was heavily influenced by the work of renowned sociologist Professor Evan Stark from Rutgers University. Ireland followed suit with similar legislation in May 2018, though it has yet to come into effect.

And just a couple weeks ago, a new offence came into effect in Scotland that Stark describes as the new "gold standard" for this sort of law.

In an edited book we will be releasing later this year, Stark describes coercive control as a "malign pattern of domination" that can include "emotional abuse, historical abuse, isolation, sexual coercion, financial abuse, cyber-stalking, and other distal forms of intimidation."

In other words, it describes a wide range of controlling behaviours that one person (usually a man) commits against another person (usually a woman, and usually a current or former intimate partner). These behaviours collectively strip the other person of their autonomy and sense of self-worth.

   Read more: Domestic abuse: the psychology of coercive control remains a legal battlefield

This typically involves some or all of the following: physical violence, intimidation, degradation, isolation and regulation.

For the past few years, we have been keeping track of cases in which offenders have been convicted of controlling or coercive behaviour in England and Wales, and the results reveal a range of deplorable behaviours. For example, some offenders have

threatened to expose private photographs of their partner or ex-partner

prevented their partner from ending the relationship by threatening to, or actually engaging in, self-harm

confiscated or destroyed their partner's mobile phone

deleted all male contacts on their partner's social media

threatened to or actually harmed their partner's pets

demanded that their partner eat certain foods

demanded that their partner sleep on the floor

prohibited their partner from seeking or continuing employment

controlled their partner's finances, with one giving his partner an allowance out of her own income

conducted regular inspections of their partner's home or body for evidence of infidelity.

In most cases (but not all), these behaviours have occurred in the context of a relationship that at some point involved actual or threatened physical violence.

And while there have been some male victims in these cases, the overwhelming majority have been female.

   Read more: Sally Challen: what quashing of murder conviction means for similar cases alleging coercive control

Aren't those behaviours already illegal in Australia?

Few issues have received as much attention in Australia in recent years as family violence. Yet for all the work that has been done, it is perhaps surprising to note that most of the above behaviours – with the exception of actual or threatened physical violence and stalking – are not criminal. (At least, they aren't criminal unless a court has previously issued an intervention or protection order, but what message does it send to victims if the abuse they suffer is only criminal if it violates a court order?)

A number of Australian law reform bodies have considered introducing a new coercive control offence here. These include the Australian Law Reform Commission in 2010, the Special Taskforce on family violence in Queensland in 2015, and the Royal Commission into Family Violence in Victoria in 2016. However, all ultimately rejected this course of action.

But most of these decisions were made before the UK laws came into effect, or at least before we knew how such an offence would work in practical terms. That is no longer the case.

   Read more: Australia should be cautious about introducing laws on coercive control to stem domestic violence

Now that we know what sorts of behaviours this offence would target, it is time to ask again: should coercive control be made a crime in Australia?

The Victorian Law Reform Commission certainly seems to think so. It was recently asked to consider whether family violence victims should be entitled to compensation from the state if they have been subjected to non-physical abuse, even though it is not yet a crime. The commission rejected that approach, and instead suggested the more appropriate response would be to "criminalise such conduct".

The Coalition party in Queensland had also promised to introduce a similar coercive control offence in that state if it won the 2017 election. The Coalition lost, but the idea was put out there nonetheless.

Arguments against implementing a law

There are some who still adamantly oppose the introduction of a new offence that criminalises what many family violence victims, including those on a recent episode of ABC's You Can't Ask That, have called the "worst part" of abuse.

Some of these critics are concerned that women could be mistakenly identified as primary aggressors if police aren't properly trained. For example, recent research by Women's Legal Service Victoria found that women had been misidentified as the primary aggressor in about 10% of police-initiated applications for intervention orders.

Critics are also concerned that a new law could divert vital resources away from domestic violence prevention. They also worry the male-centric and adversarial nature of the criminal justice system might make it an inappropriate forum to address an issue that overwhelmingly affects women.

We agree that these issues would need to be addressed as part of any law reform process. But these are obstacles to be overcome, particularly through the involvement of victims of coercive control and advocacy groups in the drafting of any new laws.

These aren't reasons to turn a blind eye. And they certainly aren't reasons to expect victims to continue to absorb this sort of abuse as a private burden in which the state has no interest.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
 New laws in the UK have led to convictions for a range of deplorable behaviours used to control partners in relationships. It's time Australia reconsidered introducing such legislation here. Paul McGorrery, PhD Candidate in Criminal Law, Deakin University Marilyn McMahon, Deputy Dean, School of Law, Deakin University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/115562 2019-04-17T19:49:23Z 2019-04-17T19:49:23Z New study finds family violence is often poorly understood in faith communities

Religious beliefs about hierarchical gender roles can influence attitudes towards family and domestic violence. Shutterstock

We learned this month that Prime Minister Scott Morrison has pledged A$10 million in the federal budget for couples counselling and mediation for families impacted by domestic violence.

But the proposed policy runs counter to expert advice and evidence, which indicates that encouraging women to stay in relationships with an abuser exposes them to higher risk of harm. The announcement was swiftly condemned by family and domestic violence (FDV) advocates.

Commentators have noted that an emphasis on mediation and the maintenance of relationships, even if they are abusive, is common within many religious and faith communities. Faith and religion are well recognised as having a powerful influence on attitudes, beliefs and social norms related to FDV, but empirical academic research on the subject remains scarce.

We recently conducted a study with leaders and community members from various faiths to better understand the capacity of faith communities to address and prevent FDV. Our initial findings indicate that while FDV is a common problem in faith communities, it remains poorly understood.

Women experiencing FDV can face barriers to seeking appropriate help. This is often due to attitudes and practices that deny or minimise experiences of FDV, and encourage women to stay in relationships with their abusers.

   Read more: Domestic violence and Australian churches: why the current data have limitations

Family and domestic violence is a taboo topic

We conducted interviews and focus groups with Anglican, Evangelical and Christian (including Catholic), Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu and Jewish leaders and community members. We also spoke with key people who had experience working in FDV with faith leaders and faith communities.

In our interviews, participants often described FDV as being a taboo topic. It was also considered a private, family issue – we found it was rarely spoken about openly in faith and religious communities. Participants thought this contributed to a generally low awareness of FDV, and led to a limited understanding of the issue.

According to participants, faith communities' understanding of FDV was generally limited to acts of physical violence. However, FDV can include other forms of abuse, such as emotional, social, financial and spiritual. Participants also said that conversations about FDV are sometimes met with denial and defensiveness among faith communities. This was true across different faiths.

Many participants emphasised that faith and religion does not condone violence. They suggested FDV resulted from a misinterpretation of religious beliefs, or was related to cultural norms. The idea that some religious beliefs and practices can promote victim-blaming attitudes and overemphasise forgiveness, acceptance and endurance was a dominant theme.

In particular, religious beliefs about hierarchical gender roles and male authority that consider men and women to be "equal but different" were seen by some participants as a strong influence on attitudes to FDV within faith communities.

Religious teachings about gender roles, where wives are expected to submit to their husbands, were also seen as contributing to denial and minimisation of FDV. These teachings also contributed to victim-blaming attitudes and failure to believe women disclosing FDV experiences.

Participants across many faiths saw a focus on keeping couples and marriages together as being of primary importance in their communities. But there was an awareness that this often prevented those experiencing FDV from seeking help due to the strong stigma and shame of divorce and relationship separation.

   Read more: How domestic violence affects women's mental health

How faith leaders respond to the problem

Participants thought the capacity of faith leaders' and faith communities' to address and prevent FDV was limited and highly variable. Some communities said their leaders were helpful, while others failed to act.

Some participants did report feeling that progress was being made – albeit slowly – as leaders and communities became increasingly aware of FDV. There are grassroots groups and informal leaders across faith communities doing important work in this area. Some community members expressed that their faith gave them support in difficult times – including when experiencing FDV.

Several faith leaders observed that some other leaders didn't share the same level of skills, awareness and responsibility in responding to FDV. For example, some leaders failed to respond to FDV disclosures appropriately, such as with a referral to specialist services.

One leader suggested that others not only failed to access expert support, but used religious texts in ways that further perpetrated trauma and harm. Some faith leaders were viewed as falsely confident and lacking insight into their own limitations – a problem perpetuated by their positions of power within their community.

   Read more: After a deadly month for domestic violence, the message doesn't appear to be getting through

What can be done?

Participants in our study provided a number of recommendations for effectively reducing FDV. These include:

more information about what constitutes FDV and the harm FDV can have on individuals and their families to increase awareness and understanding of the issue

more resources to support and train faith leaders, community leaders, and grassroots faith groups in FDV work

more evidence of the prevalence of FDV in faith communities should be gathered to motivate and engage those that deny or minimise the existence of FDV in their community

marriage preparation, and counselling and religious sermons should include information about respectful and healthy relationships and FDV

organisations in the FDV sector need to work together in partnership with faith leaders and communities to achieve change in FDV work. This involves collaborating in a respectful way using approaches that suit each distinct community.

Further investment in FDV is welcome, but it needs to be directed towards evidence-based best practice, and guided by experts on the ground who work directly with those experiencing FDV.

More broadly, to prevent and stop FDV and the harm it causes, we need greater reflection on the attitudes and beliefs that drive FDV across all sections of the community, including within faith communities.

Mandy Truong works for an ANU Centre that receives funding from the Commonwealth Department of Social Services.

Bianca Calabria works for the Centre for Mental Health Research (ANU) and is an investigator on projects funded by the Commenwealth Department of Social Services.

Mienah Zulfacar Sharif works for an ANU Centre that receives funding from the Commonwealth Department of Social Services.

Naomi Priest receives funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and the Australian Research Council (ARC), and works for an ANU Centre that has and continues to receive funding from the Commonwealth Department of Social Services.
 Women experiencing family and domestic violence within faith communities can face attitudes and practices that encourage them to stay in relationships with their abusers. Mandy Truong, Research Fellow, ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods, Australian National University Bianca Calabria, Research Fellow, Australian National University Mienah Zulfacar Sharif, Research fellow, Australian National University Naomi Priest, Fellow, ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods, Australian National University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/114610 2019-04-11T20:12:08Z 2019-04-11T20:12:08Z No matter who is elected, more work remains on women's rights and Indigenous issues
This article is part of a series examining the Coalition government's record on key issues while in power and what Labor is promising if it wins the 2019 federal election.

Women's rights and gender equity

Louise Chappell, Director of the Australian Human Rights Institute and Scientia Professor, Law Faculty, UNSW

For most of the Coalition's time in office, gender justice concerns have received scant attention across the board. Former Women's Minister Michaelia Cash, in fact, is probably better remembered for her sexist slurs on Bill Shorten's female staff than any major policy announcement.

Since stepping into the minister role in 2017, Kelly O'Dwyer has clearly worked to improve the government's profile and performance and attempted to develop a coherent policy agenda.

On her watch, the government met its goal of reaching gender parity on government boards and announced a A$109 million women's economic security package focused on workforce participation, economic independence, and expanding women's earning potential. While this was welcome, some commentators criticised the relatively small funding package, especially given the scale of the problems it set out to address.

   Read more: The Liberals have a serious women problem – and it's time they took action to change it

Politically, the Coalition's emphasis on support for domestic violence survivors in the package was a sign it was still playing catch-up after it threatened to strip A$35 million in funding from frontline legal domestic violence services in the 2014 budget. Earlier this year, the Morrison government also committed to spending A$328 million to implement the National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and Their Children, a program commenced under the Rudd and Gillard ALP governments.

Other women's issues have been more problematic for the Coalition. For instance, the ParentsNext program has been been the subject of a Senate inquiry over allegations of discrimination on the basis of sex, race and family type. Critics also point to the lack of concrete action on women's homelessness. Reforms to the childcare system implemented in 2018, meanwhile, are proving a bureaucratic nightmare for families with insecure, unpredictable or contract-based jobs.

The Coalition government has also notably failed when it comes to increasing the number of women in its ranks.

Across both houses of parliament, women comprise just 22.9% of Liberal Party members and only 9.5% of National Party representatives. Women have also held a small proportion of senior Cabinet positions since 2013 (10% under Tony Abbott, 21% under Malcolm Turnbull, and currently 30% under Scott Morrison). In addition, both Coalition partners continue to resist the introduction of gender quotas for parliament.

What about Labor?

These numbers should improve if Labor wins the May election. With women currently making up 46% of Labor's numbers in parliament, the ALP is close to reaching its goal of gender parity. A strong swing to Labor may well help it reach its goal of 50-50 female representation – or more.

The ALP has already announced a detailed women's policy platform, claiming it will put gender at the centre of decision-making. This includes the reintroduction of "gender policy machinery" to government, meaning Labor pledges to conduct a gender impact assessment on all policy decisions and cabinet submissions, and release an annual gender budget statement.

   Read more: Australia can do more to attract and keep women in parliament – here are some ideas

Tanya Plibersek, the deputy leader and shadow women's minister, has also made several key announcements, including new measures to tackle the gender superannuation gap and increase childcare funding. Most controversially, the ALP has outlined a plan to deliver a National Sexual and Reproductive Health Strategy, which will include decriminalising abortion and providing access to termination services.

While history shows that ALP governments tend to have a stronger record than Coalition governments in advancing women's rights, it would be wrong to be complacent. Past Labor governments have proved inconsistent on women's issues, for example, cutting single parent pensions and keeping women asylum seekers in detention.

This means Australian women must continue to put pressure on both sides of politics to fully realise their rights.

Indigenous rights

Lindon Coombes, Industry Professor (Indigenous Policy), University of Technology Sydney

The Coalition has had a clear focus on employment and business development as the key platforms for improving Indigenous outcomes over both terms of its government, but its top-down approach and failure to genuinely work with Indigenous peoples and organisations has led to few successes.

One of the key components of the government's policies – and one of the most controversial – has been the Community Development Program (CDP), instituted in 2015. Although the program was championed by the Coalition as a key way of improving rural employment in Indigenous communities, it immediately came under fire and became the subject of a Senate inquiry in 2017.

According to testimony at the inquiry, the success rate in getting Indigenous people into full-time or part-time work has only been about 10%. The program has also been overly punitive, with more than 350,000 fines issued to some 33,000 participants for lateness or missed appointments.

   Read more: Why the government was wrong to reject an Indigenous 'Voice to Parliament'

Another contentious Coalition-led initiative has been the so-called "cashless welfare card", which has been trialled in various locations across the country. The government claims the card will reduce domestic violence and crime, and improve the welfare of children and families. But an evaluation of a similar program in the Northern Territory could not find "any substantive evidence of the program having significant changes relative to its key policy objectives".

Equally controversial has been the Indigenous Advancement Strategy (IAS), one of Tony Abbott's key policy initiatives. In 2016 a Senate inquiry found that less than half of successful applications had gone to Indigenous organisations the year before. Last November, it was also revealed that A$500,000 of IAS money had been given to non-Indigenous industry groups to counter Aboriginal land claims.

Perhaps most disappointing to Indigenous peoples, however, has been the lack of support in the Coalition government for the Uluru Statement's call for an Indigenous voice to Parliament. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull dismissed the statement as an unworkable attempt to create a "third chamber" of parliament. His successor, Scott Morrison, echoed this view after coming to power.

What about Labor?

While both parties are committed to Constitutional recognition of Indigenous peoples, the ALP has promised to hold a referendum on enshrining an Indigenous voice to parliament in the Constitution. Labor has also pledged to establish a Makarrata Commission to supervise a truth-telling and agreement-making process formed between governments and Indigenous peoples.

It appears unlikely the Coalition will support either measure as part of its platform.

   Read more: With a seat on the UN Human Rights Council, Australia must fix its record on Indigenous rights

The ALP has also guaranteed it would comply with the Racial Discrimination Act (RDA) and affirmed its support for the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The Coalition, meanwhile, has long expressed its desire to amend or abolish the RDA and has been largely silent on the UN declaration.

The ALP has also committed to support the National Congress of Australia's First Peoples as the peak national representative body for Indigenous peoples after it had its funding slashed by the Coalition.

Both parties have aligned behind the Closing the Gap targets, but the ALP has added three extra targets: to increase Indigenous participation in higher education, improve access to services for Indigenous peoples with disabilities, and reduce incarceration and victimisation rates in Indigenous communities.

Louise Chappell receives funding from the Australian Research Council.

Lindon Coombes is Co-Chair of Reconciliation NSW
 Some of the Coalition government's initiatives on women and Indigenous issues have been more successful than others. Labor is promising much more. Louise Chappell, Director of the Australian Human Rights Institute; Professor of Law, UNSW Lindon Coombes, Industry Professor (Indigenous Policy), University of Technology Sydney Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/113451 2019-03-14T19:04:48Z 2019-03-14T19:04:48Z How can we make families safer? Get men to change their violent behaviour

Some men don't realise their abusive behaviour constitutes domestic violence. This needs to change. Africa Studio/Shutterstock

Domestic violence creates an unhealthy and toxic family environment that devastates the lives of all members of the family.

Domestic violence not only causes physical injury, it can also contribute to a range of mental health issues, including anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

For children, the trauma of witnessing or experiencing violence can accumulate over time. This can contribute to severe social, behavioural, emotional and cognitive problems, which persist into adulthood.

   Read more: How domestic violence affects women's mental health

Prime Minister Scott Morrison recently announced A$328 million to combat domestic violence. The investment is focused on housing solutions and front-line services for women and children.

While this investment is very welcome, we also need to stop violence occurring. This means also focusing on perpetrators, who are most commonly men.

We need to engage and motivate men to reduce unhealthy behaviours, seek help early, and stop using violence in their intimate relationships.

What do behaviour change programs do?

Men who use domestic violence are likely also to experience alcohol and other drug issues, depression, suicidal thoughts, stress, anxiety and low self-esteem.

In Australia, the preferred referral pathway for men who use domestic violence in their intimate relationships is men's behaviour change programs. Most men are referred to these programs from courts or lawyers.

Men's behaviour change programs are usually educational and therapeutic, including weekly group therapy. The topics covered include masculinity, intimate partnerships, conflict resolution, anger management, fatherhood, alcohol and drug use, trauma, stress, sexual health, oppression and spirituality.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263770/original/file-20190313-123525-86qszv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263770/original/file-20190313-123525-86qszv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263770/original/file-20190313-123525-86qszv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263770/original/file-20190313-123525-86qszv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263770/original/file-20190313-123525-86qszv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263770/original/file-20190313-123525-86qszv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263770/original/file-20190313-123525-86qszv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Men's behaviour change programs often include weekly group therapy sessions. Photographee.eu/Shutterstock

One model, the Duluth behaviour change model, focuses on exposing beliefs that reinforce abuse. It encourages accountability and taking responsibility for behaviours.

Another model, based on cognitive behavioural therapy, challenges dysfunctional beliefs and helps men develop effective strategies to regulate their emotions. It also focuses on enhancing communication skills.

But the use of these programs in Australia is plagued by a major issue: men are often mandated into a program only once their behaviour becomes so severe that they've been charged with an offence.

Instead, we need to engage men earlier by increasing their awareness and motivation to seek help for their violent behaviour.

   Read more: To stop domestic violence, we need to change perpetrators' behaviour

A key challenge for men's behaviour change programs is participants' lack of readiness to change. This is because most men who use domestic violence are ordered into treatment by courts, or forced to seek treatment by their partners or child services.

But men who volunteer to participate in behaviour change programs are more likely to alter their behaviours in the longer term than those who have little choice but to take part.

First, men need to identify their actions

Many men who use abuse don't realise their controlling and intimidating behaviour constitutes domestic violence.

Helping men identify their abusive actions as domestic violence is an important first step towards changing behaviours. Some men are so conditioned to violence that they can struggle to recognise the harm of what they're doing and its negative impact on their families. This conditioning often occurs as a result of their own upbringings, and either witnessing or experiencing domestic violence.

Friends, family, general practitioners – even barbers – could potentially be trained to identify domestic violence and hand out referral options.

New technologies and social media can play an important role. As part of our research, we have engaged men to develop their digital stories to motivate others about seeking help early. Here is one example:

We have also worked with men who use violence and with the organisation No to Violence, the peak body for services, to develop an early intervention for men to reach out for help to change their use of violence.

The resulting Better Man website helps men identify their behaviour as domestic violence and develop and motivate a greater readiness to change and seek help early.

Better Man has three modules: Better Values, Better Relationship, Better Communication. It engages men in the community and provides them with awareness and motivation to seek help for their violent behaviour – before the justice system intervenes.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263762/original/file-20190313-123538-ei08b9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/263762/original/file-20190313-123538-ei08b9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=261&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263762/original/file-20190313-123538-ei08b9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=261&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263762/original/file-20190313-123538-ei08b9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=261&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263762/original/file-20190313-123538-ei08b9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=328&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263762/original/file-20190313-123538-ei08b9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=328&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/263762/original/file-20190313-123538-ei08b9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=328&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 The No To Violence website asks men, 'Is your behaviour causing problems for your relationships or family?' and uses these questions as prompts. No to Violence

All men are prompted to contact the Men's Referral Service and other services, if they are using abusive, violent or controlling behaviours in their relationships.

As an initial pilot trial over four weeks, we recruited over 120 culturally diverse male volunteers aged 18-50 who live in Tasmania, New South Wales or Victoria to try out Better Man. It will be available more widely later this year and will be studied closely to assess its effectiveness.

Going forward, we need a greater focus and investment in reaching all members of the family, pivoting to the perpetrators and intervening early for a sustainable pathway to create safer families.

   Read more: After a deadly month for domestic violence, the message doesn't appear to be getting through

Kelsey Hegarty receives funding from National Health and Medical Research Council, ANROWS and National Australia Bank Foundation.

Mohajer A. Hameed receives funding from National Health and Medical Research Council and National Australia Bank Foundation.

Simone Tassone is affiliated with No to Violence.
 What's often missing from domestic violence responses are investments and strategies to stop men perpetrating violence in the first place. Kelsey Hegarty, Professor of Family Violence Prevention, Royal Women's Hospital and the Department of General Practice, University of Melbourne Mohajer A. Hameed, Research Fellow, University of Melbourne Simone Tassone, Policy and Research Manager, No to Violence and Associate Investigator, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/112288 2019-03-14T06:26:24Z 2019-03-14T06:26:24Z Dowry abuse does exist, but let's focus on the wider issues of economic abuse and coercive control

Australia's Senate inquiry was unable to report on the prevalence of dowry and dowry abuse in Australia. Data is sketchy and evidence anecdotal. Shutterstock

Rina's marriage problems began two days before her wedding, when her fiance's parents demanded gold and a car. Her parents agreed to part of the demands to ensure the planned marriage went ahead.

But the 27-year-old Indian woman's marriage to a man in Melbourne would last just eight months, as abusive behaviour by her husband and new in-laws escalated.

Dowries – where the bride's parents are forced to give valuable gifts to the husband's parents – have been officially banned for decades in India. But dowry traditions continue to live on throughout South Asia and in the Middle East.

   Read more: When gold prices go up, so does the cost of a dowry – and baby girl survival rates in India fall

As Rina's story shows, it has also been imported into expatriate communities in Australia.

To what extent remains unknown. The Senate inquiry into Dowry and Dowry Abuse was asked to report on the prevalence of dowry in Australia. But its final report, published last month, says there is insufficient data to do so, with the available evidence on dowry abuse "largely anecdotal".

The inquiry decided not to recommend a specific law against dowry. It has instead recommended that "economic abuse" be included as a form of family violence in the Family Law Act, and that dowry abuse be included in a "non-exhaustive list" of examples of economic abuse.

This seems to me the right approach, based on the stories Rina and others told me as part of my research into financial and domestic abuse. Of 17 stories from Indian migrants, only Rina's involved dowry abuse.

Rather than focusing on specific cultural practices, with the danger of demonising specific minority communities, we need to concentrate on economic abuse in whatever form it takes.

Rina's story

I heard Rina's story as part of the comparative research I did with Marg Liddell and Jasvinder Sidhu on money, gender and family violence. We listened to 17 Indian migrants, 13 Anglo-Celtic women and 17 community leaders, service providers and leaders of faith communities. We found our interviewees through professional, personal and community networks.

Their stories demonstrated that economic abuse was not limited by culture. Dowry abuse was just one example of many different forms of economic abuse.

   Read more: When care becomes control - financial abuse cuts across cultures

What is economic abuse? It is any type of economic control or exploitation. It might involve preventing a partner from getting work, so as to control how much money they have. It might include determining what they can spend money on. It might involve insisting on access to bank accounts or controlling other assets.

In Rina's case, most of her jewellery was kept in a bank locker under her father-in-law's name in India (her in-laws nonetheless remained dissatisfied with the dowry they had received). With no job or money or bank account of her own, she was completely dependent on handouts from her husband. In her first six months in Australia, she said, he gave her just $100 in spending money.

He was jealous and controlling in other ways, too. Though her only social activity was attending the Sikh temple each week, this didn't stop him accusing her of having a relationship with every man she spoke with, she told me.

He demanded to know if she had given the man her mobile phone number, and would "snatch my phone, saying that he pays the bill so I have no right to talk to anybody".

Three months into the marriage his jealousy escalated into physical abuse. Rina's father sent her a ticket, and she returned to India. After two months she came back to Melbourne to give him another chance. But almost immediately, her husband's behaviour left her fearing for her life. "I felt if I stayed there another night," she said, "I would be found dead the next day."

Broader economic abuse

Rina, clearly, was subjected to abuse that went way beyond dowry abuse.

We heard other stories of economic abuse involving no dowry.

In Asha's case, her husband wanted to control the money she earned, dictating how she spent it and preventing her from sending any to help her family in India.

She had originally come to Australia to study. Her husband was a fellow Indian student. Before and after they got married, she was the principal income earner.

Once they were married, she said, he wanted to control all the money. "You should be giving all your money to me," she says he told her. "You are now a member of my family." While he failed to pay an equal share of their bills, she recalls him criticising her for overspending on a $2 bag of papadums.

About six months into their marriage, he kicked her in the stomach. "I could take the emotional abuse," she said. "I could take the verbal abuse, but I could not comprehend a man beating me."

Such controlling behaviour is by no means a feature of one culture.

One of our Anglo-Celtic stories involved Carol. A teacher in her late 60s, she put her savings of $60,000 and her salary into a joint account with her second husband. Though she was the main and only reliable earner, he questioned every item of expenditure, every gift she wanted to give.

"He took it all," Carol said. As their relationship deteriorated she increasingly feared physical violence. She recalled one occasion where she hid in a walk-in wardrobe for three hours: "I'd nearly gone crazy."

Such stories show it would make little sense for social policy or law makers to focus on one narrow, culturally specific manifestation of economic abuse.

Coercive control

Coercive control underlies economic abuse as with other dimensions of family violence.

It works through "malevolent" conduct over time to instil fear and isolate the women. Its tactics lead to women feeling they are poor mothers, wives, home makers and sexual partners. It has a devastating effect on women from all backgrounds and walks of life across Australia.

Changing the Family Law Act to recognise economic abuse as a form of domestic violence (and dowry abuse as a form of economic abuse) is a good start.

But we would do well to go further, and have a conversation about criminalising the coercive and controlling behaviour behind economic abuse.

   Read more: Australia should be cautious about introducing laws on coercive control to stem domestic violence

This has been done in England and Wales (2015), Scotland (2018) and Ireland (2018). These new laws have drawn attention to the need to think of family violence as more than separate incidents of physical assault.

The emphasis on coercive control requires a different type of policing. It looks at a pattern of behaviour that is corrosive, involving emotional, economic, sexual and physical abuse. It's this pattern of controlling and coercive behaviour that is criminalised.

Nothing ever happened to the abusers of Rina, Asha and Carol. Criminalising coercive control would have ensured they were properly held to account.

Supriya Singh does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
 Rather than focusing on specific cultural practices, we need to concentrate on all forms of economic abuse as coercive control. Supriya Singh, Professor, Sociology of Communications, Graduate School of Business & Law, RMIT University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/112869 2019-03-13T04:14:54Z 2019-03-13T04:14:54Z Why Sally Challen's appeal is not a win for women victims of coercive control

Coercive control is a form of domestic violence based on a subtle but persistent form of emotional and psychological abuse.  from shutterstock.com

In 2011, Sally Challen was convicted of murdering her husband. She was sentenced to 22 years imprisonment, which was reduced to 18 on appeal.

On February 28, 2019 three judges of the England and Wales' appeal court quashed Challen's 2011 conviction. The decision was made on fresh evidence provided by a psychiatrist. It showed Challen was suffering from two mental disorders at the time of the killing. Challen will now face a retrial.

The court ruling has been heralded as a "victory" for Challen's family and women's rights advocates. It's also been celebrated by proponents of the criminalisation of coercive control, a form of domestic violence based on a subtle but persistent form of emotional and psychological abuse.

   Read more: Sally Challen: what quashing of murder conviction means for similar cases alleging coercive control

Advocates say Challen's case "has brought public attention to an under-recognised feature of domestic violence relationships". But a closer look at the decision shows the case has less to do with Challen's mental state than it does than the cumulative effects of coercive control.

The Sally Challen case

Sally Challen killed her husband of 31 years in 2010. She struck him multiple times with a hammer while he ate breakfast in their home. She had previously tried to leave him, citing allegations of severe emotional abuse. Her husband allegedly bullied and belittled her, controlled their money and who she was friends with, and didn't allow her to socialise without him.

At trial, Challen denied murder on the grounds of diminished responsibility due to her mental state at the time. This was unsuccessful. The prosecution argued Challen was "eaten up with jealousy" and had snapped after learning her husband was having an affair.

It seems this case has turned on questions around Challen's mental state and the quality of evidence supporting her case of diminished responsibility. So why has coercive control featured so strongly in media coverage?

Criminalisation of coercive control

Coercive and controlling behaviour was introduced as a criminal offence in England and Wales in 2015, under Section 76 of the Serious Crime Act 2015.

Those working in the field have increasingly recognised coercive control as a feature of intimate partner relationships since the early 1980s. But the recognition of its impact has only recently made its way into criminal cases.

   Read more: Coercive control cases have doubled – but police still miss patterns of this domestic abuse

Coercive control may not be experienced as physical abuse – it is more likely to be psychological, emotional and financial. It leads to the victim experiencing constant fear and intimidation, as well as a sense of powerlessness that can lead to a level of dependency in which lethal violence may appear the only way out.

Those advocating for coercive control to play a larger role in family violence cases say Challen's recent "win" shows significant progress after the law change.

Challen's defence team, and much of the press coverage in the lead up to the recent appeal, focused on this new legislation when appealing her conviction – as well as the fresh evidence of her mental condition. Using evidence from friends and family, along with contested psychiatric evidence, Challen's defence appealed her conviction on the basis she was living in a coercive and controlling relationship and that the long-term effects of this led her to kill her husband.

Yet the extent to which the coercive control argument gained traction with the court is questionable. In this recent Court of Appeal decision, Lady Justice Hallett, said:

There might be those out there who think this is [sic] appeal is all about coercive control but it's not… Primarily, it's about diagnosis of disorders that were undiagnosed at the time of the trial.

The court of appeal ordered a retrial for murder and that no bail be accorded to the defendant. A leading women's aid group in the UK described this as a "bittersweet victory". In putting psychiatric disorders centre stage, this paves the way for the partial defence of diminished responsibility to be reconsidered in the retrial.

Lessons for Australia

The Challen case marks some timely lessons for those supporting the criminalisation of coercive control in Australia. Various Australian states and territories have been debating the merits of a specific offence of coercive control over the past five years.

The Tasmanian Family Violence Act 2004 bears some comparison with the 2015 legislation in England and Wales. The Act introduced two new offences: one of economic abuse and one of emotional abuse and intimidation. Both of these fit within the rubric of coercive control and both are couched in terms of an ongoing course of conduct.

Yet to date, neither the Tasmanian or the UK law has resulted in many prosecutions. The UK's Office of National Statistics shows 4,686 defendants were prosecuted for coercive and controlling behaviour in the year ending December 2017 out of around 2 million offences of domestic abuse. In Tasmania, in the decade following its introduction, there were only eight people convicted of emotional abuse or intimidation.

   Read more: How domestic violence affects women's mental health

A detailed examination of the operation of the two new offences in Tasmania suggests the lack of prosecutions isn't due to practitioners' unwillingness to pursue cases under the new laws. They say it's more likely due to flaws in the legislation, including lack of clarity in the law and overlap with other offences.

While coercive and controlling behaviours are recognised as abuse in the definition of family violence in the majority of Australian states and territories, Tasmania remains the only Australian jurisdiction to introduce a specific criminal offence to cover this form of family violence. Neither the Victorian Royal Commission into Family Violence nor the Queensland Not Now, Not Ever Report recommended an offence of coercive control.

From the legal perspective, the Challen case may result in the re-assertion of diminished responsibility as a useful partial defence for women who resort to lethal violence in circumstances of this kind. This will be a "win" for Sally Challen, but a "loss" for women as a whole, due to it painting women's criminality as a consequence of them being "mad" or "bad".

As such, we continue to urge caution to Australian jurisdictions considering adopting an offence similar to that of the UK. The Challen case should not be misinterpreted as evidence of the success of the new offence. The offence of coercive control, in and of itself, is not a conduit to justice for women who kill their prolonged domestic abusers.

Kate Fitz-Gibbon is a member of the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre. Kate receives funding for family violence related research from the Australian Research Council, ANROWS, Family Safety Victoria and Victoria Police. She is a member of the Board of Directors of Respect Victoria.

Sandra Walklate is Eleanor Rathbone Chair of Sociology at the University of Liverpool, U.K. conjoint Chair of Criminology, Monash University Australia. She is a Lead Researcher of the Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre, Monash University.
 Advocates say the recent quashing of Sally Challen's murder conviction brought attention to a hidden feature of domestic violence. But it may have also painted Challen as an unstable woman. Kate Fitz-Gibbon, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, Monash University Sandra Walklate, Eleanor Rathbone Chair of Sociology, University of Liverpool Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/112739 2019-03-04T11:22:57Z 2019-03-04T11:22:57Z Sally Challen: what quashing of murder conviction means for similar cases alleging coercive control
The quashing of Sally Challen's conviction by the Court of Appeal for murdering her husband Richard in 2010 will give hope to those who believe that abuse can and should reduce the level of blame afforded to those who kill their abusers. Criminal courts have traditionally been slow to recognise the effect abuse has on victims and Challen will now face a retrial for murder – one that should take into account the alleged coercive control she is believed to have suffered during her marriage.

A person coerces and controls a victim using a pattern of behaviour that isolates them from sources of support, subordinates them and makes them dependent upon the abuser. Using coercive or controlling behaviour towards an intimate partner or family member became a criminal offence under in the Serious Crime Act 2015. In one sense Challen's case has been successful at raising the profile of this kind of behaviour, now recognised as a common feature of many domestic abuse relationships. And leave to appeal against her conviction was granted in 2018, partly based on the argument that there had been significant advances in society's understanding about domestic abuse, and particularly the use of coercive control.

Avenues of defence

But there are limits to the Challen appeal decision. The reported comments of the appeal judges suggest that the court quashed Challen's conviction for murder not so much for the fact she allegedly endured coercive control, but on the basis that she had suffered from two mental disorders which were not known at her trial. Should this be the case, then it will be a disappointment for campaigners trying to raise awareness of the impact of coercive control.

At the time of the killing in 2010, relevant provisions under the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 had not come into force, meaning that the legal defences available to Challen were either provocation or diminished responsibility. The former requires a sudden loss of control in response to provocation, whereas diminished responsibility is established where the defendant experiences an abnormality of mind at the time they killed. But neither defence was successful in Challen's case.

A Court of Appeal decision quashing Challen's conviction on the basis of a mental disorder that was not known at the time of her trial means that once again defending women who kill relies on showing they were "mad" rather than centring on the behaviour that caused them to kill.

Coercive control advocates have argued that the effects of being subject to a pattern of continuous subjugation in an intimate relationship make all targeted victims vulnerable. They argue that this vulnerability is not only acute for those who are able to show that they have a mental disorder. Research illustrates the toll domestic abuse has upon victims. The number of suicides by women who are victims of domestic violence in England and Wales is estimated to exceed those killed by their partners or ex-partners. Attempted suicides by women subject to domestic violence are five times more prevalent compared to those not subject to it.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261636/original/file-20190301-110107-4oxe7o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261636/original/file-20190301-110107-4oxe7o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=428&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261636/original/file-20190301-110107-4oxe7o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=428&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261636/original/file-20190301-110107-4oxe7o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=428&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261636/original/file-20190301-110107-4oxe7o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=538&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261636/original/file-20190301-110107-4oxe7o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=538&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261636/original/file-20190301-110107-4oxe7o.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=538&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Spotting the signs of coercive control. Artsplav/Shutterstock

Persuading a court

The decision to quash Challen's conviction may have limited use to the majority of victims of coercive control who enter the criminal justice system as defendants, because it specifically concerns avenues for defence in instances of murder as I've previously argued.

Where there is evidence of physically abusive behaviour, self-defence may be used as a defence where the abused person attacks the abuser. However, the force used in response to the perceived threat must be reasonable, something that may not be appreciated by members of a jury who may not understand the meanings behind the gestures used to threaten the victim.

In cases where the coercive and controlling behaviour is predominantly psychological, it will also be very difficult to persuade a court that force was needed to escape the abuser. Currently, if an abused person commits a crime as a result of being coerced or controlled there is no defence in law for this. Although on the face of it duress may be a possible defence, it has been interpreted too narrowly for the coerced and controlled defendant to use.

The high-profile nature of Challen's case and the decision to order a retrial does carry hope for other future cases that have some similarities to Challen's. The first opportunity to test its reach will be the appeal case of Emma-Jayne Magsun, who was also granted leave to appeal her murder conviction in November 2018. The Challen case has raised the profile of coercive control, but juries still need to be clearly informed about the impact this form of abuse has on victims.

Vanessa Bettinson does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
 Sally Challen, convicted of murdering her husband in 2010, will now face a retrial. A lawyer explains the legal significance of the ruling. Vanessa Bettinson, Professor of Criminal Law and Criminal Justice , De Montfort University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/104926 2019-02-18T19:06:06Z 2019-02-18T19:06:06Z How domestic violence affects women's mental health

Women who have been victims of domestic abuse may experience depression, anxiety and substance abuse, among other psychological impacts. From shutterstock.com

Every week in Australia, a woman is murdered by someone she knows. And it's usually an intimate male partner or ex-partner.

One in three women has suffered physical violence since the age of 15. In most cases (92% of the time) it's by a man she knows.

Added to this, one-quarter of Australian women have suffered emotional abuse from a current or former partner. This occurs when a partner seeks to gain psychological and emotional control of the woman by demeaning her, controlling her actions, being verbally abusive and intimidating her.

Physical and emotional abuse is not only distressing, it's psychologically damaging and increases women's risk of developing a mental illness.

   Read more: Revealed: the hidden problem of economic abuse in Australia

How violence increases the risk

Women who have experienced domestic violence or abuse are at a significantly higher risk of experiencing a range of mental health conditions including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, substance abuse, and thoughts of suicide.

In situations of domestic violence, an abuser's outburst is commonly followed by remorse and apology. But this "honeymoon" period usually ends in violence and abuse. This cycle means women are constantly anticipating the next outburst. Women in these situations feel they have little control, particularly when the abuse is happening in their own home.

   Read more: Why some migrants in abusive relationships don't receive help, and are deported

It's no wonder living under such physical and emotional pressure impacts on mental and physical well-being.

One review of studies found the odds of experiencing PTSD was about seven times higher for women who had been victims of domestic violence than those who had not.

The likelihood of developing depression was 2.7 times greater, anxiety four times greater, and drug and alcohol misuse six times greater.

The likelihood of having suicidal thoughts was 3.5 times greater for women who had experienced domestic violence than those who hadn't.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/259456/original/file-20190218-56204-1kxaa2y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/259456/original/file-20190218-56204-1kxaa2y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/259456/original/file-20190218-56204-1kxaa2y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/259456/original/file-20190218-56204-1kxaa2y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/259456/original/file-20190218-56204-1kxaa2y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/259456/original/file-20190218-56204-1kxaa2y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/259456/original/file-20190218-56204-1kxaa2y.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Survivors of domestic abuse are often reluctant to talk about their experiences. From shutterstock.com

An Australian study of 1,257 female patients visiting GPs found women who were depressed were 5.8 times more likely to have experienced physical, emotional or sexual abuse than women who were not depressed.

Not only is domestic violence and abuse a risk factor for psychological disorders, but women who have pre-existing mental health issues are more likely to be targets for domestic abusers.

Women who are receiving mental health services for depression, anxiety and PTSD, for instance, are at higher risk of experiencing domestic violence compared to women who do not have these disorders.

   Read more: Pregnant women are at increased risk of domestic violence in all cultural groups

How do mental health services respond?

Although survivors of domestic violence are more likely to suffer mental illness, they are not routinely asked about domestic violence or abuse when getting mental health treatment. So they're not provided with appropriate referrals or support.

One study found only 15% of mental health practitioners routinely enquired about domestic violence. Some 60% reported a lack of knowledge about domestic violence, while 27% believed they did not have adequate referral resources.

One-quarter (27%) of mental health practitioners provided women experiencing domestic violence with information about support services and 23% made a referral to counselling.

In the absence of direct questioning, survivors of domestic violence are reluctant to disclose abuse to health service providers. If mental health providers are managing the symptoms of the mental illness but ignoring the cause of the trauma, treatment is less likely to be successful.

Practitioners need to routinely ask women about present or past incidents of domestic violence if they are diagnosed as depressed or anxious, or if they show any other signs of mental distress.

Practitioners should be able to provide referrals to specialist services and need to be adequately trained to respond to those who disclose domestic violence. This means not focusing solely on medical treatment, but also on referrals and support.

   Read more: Man who burnt his wife alive gets at least 27 years' jail, but not life – as victim was no stranger

Rhian Parker does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
 There is a clear link between women who have experienced domestic violence and mental illness. This link needs to be better addressed in mental health services. Rhian Parker, Academic Convenor, MAEVe ( Melbourne Alliance to End Violence against women and their children, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/111338 2019-02-07T19:07:08Z 2019-02-07T19:07:08Z Why do parents kill their children? The facts about filicide in Australia

Most victims of filicide are under 17 years old. from shutterstock.com

A six-month-old baby was killed earlier this week in what is suspected to be a murder-suicide. Police are investigating whether the child was killed by its father, after their bodies were found in a car on the Sunshine Coast.

At least one child in Australia is killed by a parent each fortnight, according to a report into filicide released by the Australian Institute of Criminology this week. Filicide is a general term referring to the killing of a child by a parent or parent equivalent – which in Australia includes the custodial parent, non-custodial parents and step-parents.

The report shows that between 2000-01 and 2011-12 there were 238 recorded incidents of filicide in Australia, with 260 offenders involved in these incidents. Males constituted 52% (124) of offenders and females 48% (114).

As the graph below shows, the rate of filicide offending for males has decreased in Australia in recent years, while the rate for females has increased.

Filicide accounts for about 10% of all homicides (murders) in Australia. By comparison, a 2014 US study that looked at around 94,000 cases of filicide found it accounted for 15% of murders over that period.

Between 2002-03 and 2011-12, children accounted for 21% of domestic homicide victims, the second most frequent group after intimate partners. The AIC study showed 96% of filicide victims were aged 0-17 years.

The role of gender in filicides

Filicide is one sub-classification of domestic homicides. The others being intimate partner, parricide (killing of a parent) and siblicide (killing of a sibling). Filicide differs from the other sub-classifications in the nature of the gender of offenders.

   Read more: Children who have lost a parent to family violence need to be listened to

Where the other sub-classifications are generally committed in higher levels by males, the gender of the offenders is equally distributed in filicide. A 2015 AIC report into domestic homicide identified that between 2002-03 and 2011-12 males committed 77% of intimate partner homicides, 80% of parricides and 89% of siblicides.

This gender-neutral trend follows the pattern of other child abuse behaviours. A 2018 study into child maltreatment found that females accounted for just over half of those responsible for maltreatment.

However, within this, females were more likely to be responsible for neglect, whereas male offenders were responsible for physical, emotional and sexual abuse. In terms of filicide, the recent report found the method of killing varied between genders, with males more likely to use more violent methods.

Why do they do it?

We often see filicide as an act of an evil person. I spent many years examining the concept of evil and concluded that usually an evil act can be committed by a rather ordinary person.

Generally I found one or more of three emotive elements was necessary in the act to allow us to call it evil. These are: the perceived senselessness of the act, the perceived innocence of the victim and the uniqueness of the act. Filicide contains all three.

It is useful to try to understand why people may commit filicide. Seeking understanding is not the same as condoning, nor may the reasons appear rational. In a 2016 article, psychiatry professor Phillip Resnick  identified five major motivations for filicide, as set out in the table below.

We could, perhaps, put one of the worst cases of filicide in Australia into the first category. In 2014, Raina Mersane Ina Thaiday stabbed to death seven of her biological children and a niece. She was eventually found unfit for trial due to suffering a psychotic episode triggered by undiagnosed schizophrenia at the time of the murders.

What are the triggers for filicide

All the studies mentioned in this article have highlighted notable rates of mental health issues among those who commit filicide. A 2013 study from the UK, which examined filicides in England and Wales between 1997 and 2006, found that 40% of filicide offenders had a recorded mental illness. Young age in the offender was also a factor.

Other risk factors include acrimonious relationship breakdowns and post-separation parenting disputes. Alcohol, drug use, previous offending, a history of domestic violence and suicidal tendencies all increase the risk of offending.

   Read more: Understanding the triggers for filicide will help prevent it

Preventing filicide is difficult as the cause of the offence and relationships between the offender and victim vary. In terms of basic responses, enhanced case management and co-operation and communication between agencies have been suggested as starting blocks to identify and prevent potential filicide.

Ultimately, children are the most vulnerable of victims, and as a society we have a duty to ensure we do all in our power to protect them.

Terry Goldsworthy is affiliated with the Gold Coast Centre against sexual violence.
 At least one child is killed by a parent in Australia every fortnight. The latest report from the Australian Institute of Criminology shows the nature of filicide in Australia. Terry Goldsworthy, Associate Professor in Criminology, Bond University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/110497 2019-02-06T19:12:01Z 2019-02-06T19:12:01Z What is Islamic dispute resolution and why is it controversial in Australia?

Australian Muslims are divided on whether women will get a fair deal under Islamic dispute resolution if it is implemented here. from www.shutterstock.com

Islamic dispute resolution involves resolving disputes without going to court and is similar to alternative dispute resolution, or ADR.

But Islamic dispute resolution has been controversial. Australia's Muslim community is divided on whether it should be used here, its potential risks and benefits, and how it would sit with Australian law.

Why would an established form of mediation be so controversial? And what are the issues with implementing it in Australia?

   Read more: Explainer: what is 'sharia law'? And does it fit with Western law?

Remind me again, what is dispute resolution?

The form of dispute resolution typically used in Australia, ADR, usually involves an independent third party helping parties to resolve matters without involving courts. Alternatively, it may involve negotiation between parties and their lawyers without a third party.

It's encouraged because it is an efficient method of resolving disputes. Parties can save money and time and reduce the stress involved with court proceedings. It's often referred to as appropriate dispute resolution.

   Read more: Do you need your day in court? The evolution of dispute resolution

ADR traditionally consists of negotiation, mediation, conciliation and arbitration. In both domestic and international arbitration, the final decision is binding. Negotiation, conciliation and mediation result in non-binding decisions.

In the field of international commercial arbitration, only commercial matters between international parties can be the subject of arbitration, as opposed to family, criminal or civil matters.

What about Islamic law?

Similarly, Islamic law encourages disputes to be resolved outside court through tahkim (arbitration) or sulh (mediation). The dispute resolution processes in Islam are part of a larger Islamic legal framework, known as Islamic law or Shariah.

There are two main primary sources of Islamic law. The first is the Quran, which is the holy book for Muslims. The second is the hadith, which are written collections recording the actions and sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (Sunna). Islamic law is also divided into different schools of jurisprudence and varying interpretations.

International commercial arbitration can also be subject to Islamic law. The Asian International Arbitration Centre has developed i-Arbitration rules ("i" signifies compliance with Islamic law). This caters for international parties who are interested in resolving their disputes through Islamic procedures.

For example, an arbitrator may choose not to include interest (riba) when determining a penalty in international commercial arbitration subject to Islamic principles. Although Islamic law encourages trade and profit, it prohibits riba. This prohibition is mentioned both in the Quran and the hadith and is considered an unethical and excessive gain.

The i-Arbitration rules are also consistent with the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Arbitration Rules.

What are the objections?

In 2009, Australia's Muslim community was divided on the issue of establishing Islamic dispute resolution tribunals. One board member of the Islamic Council of Victoria supported and advocated the idea. But the Islamic Council of Victoria, as an organisation, opposed it.

The council was afraid that misconceptions about the term "Shariah" would trigger an unhealthy debate. Another concern raised by a representative of the Islamic Women's Welfare Council of Victoria was that certain patriarchal interpretations of Islamic principles could place women at a disadvantage.

For example, reports from the UK suggest that there have been cases where male mediators have made it more difficult for women to obtain a divorce because they believe it should be the last resort. Also, some mediators were unaware of issues such as domestic violence and other structural injustices impacting women.

   Read more: Explainer: what Islam actually says about domestic violence

This issue was again highlighted in the media in 2011 when the Australia Federation of Islamic Councils made a submission to the federal parliament's Committee on Multicultural Affairs calling for a recognition of certain aspects of Islamic law.

In response, the then federal attorney-general, Robert McClelland, very clearly responded that there was no place for Islamic law in Australia.

How might it work with Australian law?

However, the proposal for implementing Islamic dispute resolution and the criticisms in relation to women being at a disadvantage were not thoroughly investigated.

There was no clear empirical research about whether women's rights would be infringed in Australia if it was implemented.

It was also unclear how Islamic dispute resolution would operate. Would it function separately from or with Australian law? And would it be part of traditional ADR or separate from it? If it did form part of traditional ADR, would mediators and arbitrators be required to go through professional training and accreditation?

What can we learn from the UK?

Muslim Arbitral Tribunals operate in the UK and are subject to the law of England and Wales; they do not operate as a parallel legal system. They determine commercial, civil, family and personal law matters.

Although the tribunal may arbitrate on commercial matters, the decision can only be enforced in court if it meets legal requirements under the law of England and Wales. The tribunal can also mediate family law disputes about children and domestic violence, but such decisions are not binding.

In 2018, an independent review of these tribunals was presented to parliament. It recommended Muslim tribunals could provide women with more agency by addressing their concerns and involving them in dispute resolution procedures. Other recommendations included involving professional mediators who are aware of matters such as the rights of women to divorce, and ensuring mediators are professionals who are trained, accredited and educated about women's rights.

   Read more: Islam and feminism are not mutually exclusive, and faith can be an important liberator

Researchers from the universities of Sydney and Melbourne are exploring the experiences of women, men and mediators who have used informal community processes to resolve family disputes. The Australian Research Council is funding the project. It will shed light on whether Islamic dispute resolution processes will cater for issues such as domestic violence and the rights of women to divorce.

If the research suggests Islamic dispute resolution can operate in harmony with Australian law and provide women with agency, there is no reason why ADR should not cater for Muslims. If the operation of Muslim tribunals proves to conflict with Australian law and harm women, Muslim tribunals should not be established.

Regardless of the outcomes and recommendations, it is important that such discussions do not form part of a racist and Islamophobic narrative. Rather, Islamic dispute resolution should be further explored with the aim of empowering women and accommodating religious diversity.

Dr Maria Bhatti does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
 Islamic dispute resolution is a way of avoiding court but resolving disputes under Islamic law. Other countries use this approach. But is it right for Australia? Dr Maria Bhatti, Lecturer in Law, Western Sydney University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/110439 2019-01-31T19:12:13Z 2019-01-31T19:12:13Z Banks are enabling economic abuse. Here's how they could be stopping it

Financial institutions often have all the information they need to identify suspected cases of economic abuse. Shutterstock

The Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry delivers its final report today.

During its hearings there was an important problem that it has missed.

Banks and financial service providers are failing to adequately recognise the warning signs of economic abuse and family violence experienced by customers.

Family violence is a problem for the banks and their customers. It is a risk to them if it means loans can't be repaid. It is a risk to their customers if they are made homeless and lose income and mental health in the financial fallout of abuse.

And it's a problem for our community if banks and other institutions ignore or enable family violence.

Banks can spot warning signs

Customers, especially women, who seek loans from banks or who present to banks with high levels of financial stress might well be victims of economic abuse.

One recent Australian study found that nearly 16% of women had a history of economic abuse and 7% of men.

Economic abuse is a subtle form of violence that we often struggle to recognise.

Most of us know that slapping or pushing is violence. But even victims can fail to see that it is also violence when their partner tries to deny them money.

Here are some of the ways in which it happens:

• A victim of family violence can be forced to seek a loan that only benefits the perpetrator or to guarantee a loan made to the perpetrator

• A loan can be made to the victim and perpetrator jointly, but only the victim might make repayments

• After the violent relationship ends, the perpetrator might not contribute to repayments, and the bank might move to sell mortgaged property

• A victim might have difficulty obtaining information about a loan held in the perpetrator's name which is secured by a mortgage over a family asset

They are not yet doing enough

In recent years there have been changes to banking industry guidelines to encourage banks to prevent the financial abuse of victims of family violence.

The Australian Bankers' Association is pushing for widespread staff training. Much has been done, but a lot more needs to be done.

A 2017 survey of 98 banks, building societies, credit unions and credit providers found an alarming lack of awareness of family violence amongst front line staff who rarely identify customers experiencing violence or are even aware of support services.

Most responding institutions said they did not have family violence training for staff or plans to introduce it.

One legal service provider recently assisted 'Mi-Kim'.

Several months after Mi-Kim's husband left her, a lender contacted her to advise that the loan to the home she lived in with her pre-school-aged children was in arrears. The loan was in her husband's name but the lender could not contact him. Mi-Kim , whose English was poor, started paying money into husband's account to make mortgage repayments. He was still able to access his account and made withdrawals. The lender moved to sell the property.

These victims are doubly disadvantaged by their exposure to violence as well as poor practices on the part of their credit providers.

We know that asking about the presence of family violence helps encourage victims to disclose it. Where loans are being made to couples, financial service providers should specifically ask each member of the couple about family violence and whether any intervention/apprehended violence orders have been made.

   Read more: The banking sector can do its bit to combat family violence

Where violence is identified or suspected, a set of automatic protocols should whirr into place.

For joint loans and guarantees in the name of family members who do not benefit, banks and other creditors should have a legal obligation to warn the person taking on the obligation of the importance of obtaining independent advice. The code of practice should mandate information provision about family violence.

We have a rare opportunity to secure a common approach to family violence as part of the response to the banking royal commission. Our financial institutions should embrace it.

We are grateful to Women's Legal Service Victoria and South East Community Links for providing the case studies referred to in this article.

Becky Batagol worked for Victoria's Royal Commission into Family Violence and is a member of a committee overseeing implementation of one of its recommendations.

Marcia Neave owns shares in a bank. She chaired Victoria's Royal Commission into Family Violence and chairs or is a member of a number of committees involved in overseeing implementation of the recommendations of commission. She is also on the Board of a number of NGOs involved in social justice issues.
 The royal commission didn't examine economic abuse. If it had it would have found there's much banks can do. Becky Batagol, Associate Professor of Law, Monash Sustainable Development Institute, Monash University Marcia Neave, Distinguished Professional Visitor, Faculty of Law, Monash University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/110270 2019-01-31T19:11:37Z 2019-01-31T19:11:37Z Migrant women are particularly vulnerable to technology-facilitated domestic abuse

Technologies such as social media, SMS and tracking apps can be used by abusers to control and harass their partners.  Shutterstock

Migrant women with temporary visa status are particularly vulnerable when it comes to domestic and family violence. That vulnerability is intensified when you add technology to the mix.

Technology-facilitated abuse has been recognised as a new breed of domestic violence. Technology-facilitated abuse refers to controlling, monitoring and harassing behaviours using tools such as mobile phones, SMS, email, tracking apps and social media.

In our recent study, we analysed interviews with migrant women who had experienced domestic abuse about their experiences with technology-facilitated abuse. We found while technology can help women to reduce their isolation in a new country, a partner's control of technology may increase isolation for migrant women, which can heighten the risk of abuse.

   Read more: Technology-facilitated abuse: the new breed of domestic violence

Why migrant women are particularly vulnerable

A number of temporary visas – including partner and prospective marriage visas – require sponsorship by partners with Australian citizenship.

Women who come to Australia on these visas are often separated from family and friends, have limited access to money, and hold fears of deportation and losing custody of their children.

They are often also ineligible to access key resources, such as Centrelink and long term housing, that could help them leave violent relationships.

Technology can make a difference, but without independent income, securing a personal mobile or internet connection is challenging.

The control of devices and digital media by abusers restricts women's opportunities to connect with support networks, to identify their situation as abusive and to seek help.

These factors contribute to and compound entrapment in abusive relationships.

Listening to migrant womens' experiences

We reported on women's experiences of these harms in our study. Analysis of interviews one of us (Heather Douglas) conducted with 65 women who had experienced domestic and family violence showed that most had experienced technology-facilitated abuse as part of their partner's coercive and controlling behaviour.

Here's what some of the women on temporary visas told us.

Radha's story

Radha came to Australia after her marriage to an Australian citizen was arranged. She used Skype to maintain contact with parents, siblings, and friends overseas, but her partner intermittently disabled Skype as "a tactic to pressurise" her.

He would grant access to the internet when she ceded to his demands, such as when she agreed to make him breakfast. He restricted her access to the internet as a way to control her. She said:

it was just to make me […] do something […] Like, if I don't listen to him he would just switch off the internet.

   Read more: The smart home could worsen domestic abuse. But the same technology may also make us safer

Celina's story

Celina met her partner online, and arrived in Australia to live with him on a partner visa. She was given only enough money to catch public transport. He used a mobile phone to monitor her throughout the day. She said:

I was still new to this country and I didn't have anything. I was using his personal mobile […] He was carrying the office mobile with him all the time […] he could call me and tell me OK you do this and that during the day […] Every day after work he came home, he took the personal mobile that was with me and went to the toilet and browsed the history and everything.

Dara's story

Dara described how her abuser severed her connections to resources and her social circle, which were facilitated by technology. She said:

He totally destroyed […] my laptop. My email accounts, password, he changed, that's why I can't access my bank. I can't see my bank account, anything, he changed everything […] He steal my mobile […] It's my life this is just […] my contact point.

Angelina's story

Angelina highlights how her abuser monitored her use of technology. She said:

[he] checks [the] phone but I never hide nothing. I had a password on his computer, like guest. He always can go and check history on internet.

A key area for development

As these women's experiences show, lack of access to technology and a partner's control of devices can heighten geographic and social isolation.

This causes particular problems for migrant women who rely on technology to maintain supportive connections with family and friends in their home country.

While programs have been developed to assist domestic violence survivors to safely use technology, there are no programs targeting migrant women who are new arrivals.

Specialised services for migrant women are limited, and rely on a small number of staff to serve large geographic areas.

   Read more: Technology is both a weapon and a shield for those experiencing domestic violence

So, what can be done?

WESNET's Safe Connections program works with Telstra to provide smartphones with pre-paid credit to survivors of domestic and family violence, but this program relies on women seeking help.

Given barriers facing those on temporary visas, it would be helpful if their sponsors were required to provide a smartphone, with credit, as part of their sponsorship. Sponsors of prospective marriage visas are currently required to provide an Australian and foreign police check.

It's important, too, that technology-facilitated abuse is highlighted in programs targeting new arrivals. Women on temporary visas are often required to attend English language courses – information about technology-facilitated abuse should also be offered in this context.

Survivors could also be better protected and empowered by amendments to the Migration Regulations to expand eligibility provisions for permanent residency and to expand eligibility for government support to those on temporary visas. More specialised support services are also needed for survivors on temporary visas.

Heather Douglas receives funding from the Australian Research Council, Future Fellowship FT140100796: Using Law and Leaving Domestic Violence Project. This funding supported the research underpinning this article. Douglas thanks the Immigrant Women's Support Service for assisting to recruit women to be interviewed for this project and the women who were interviewed as part of this project.

Bridget Harris receives funding from ACCAN and the Australian Institute of Criminology. (I am currently working on grant-funded projects on technology-facilitated abuse and stalking that is not the specific data source for the article or this commentary but informs my perspective).

Molly Dragiewicz receives funding from ACCAN. (I am currently working on a grant-funded project on technology-facilitated abuse that is not the specific data source for the article or this commentary but informs my perspective)
 With few contacts and no independent income, migrant women experiencing domestic violence can become further isolated from support by abusive partners controlling their access to technology. Heather Douglas, Professor of Law, The University of Queensland Bridget Harris, Lecturer, School of Justice; Crime, Justice and Social Democracy Research Centre, Queensland University of Technology Molly Dragiewicz, Associate Professor, Queensland University of Technology Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/110258 2019-01-25T14:44:00Z 2019-01-25T14:44:00Z Domestic abuse bill: proposed changes to protect victims explained

  Sinisha Karich/Shutterstock

Domestic abuse is one of the most prevalent crimes in England and Wales, accounting for 33% of violent crime recorded by the police in the year to March 2018.

The introduction of a new bill to protect victims was part of the Conservative Party's 2017 manifesto. After a three-month public consultation in 2018, the government published its draft Domestic Abuse Bill on January 21 2019.

The draft bill puts a greater focus on children, the diverse identities of victims and on interventions for perpetrators of domestic abuse. It creates an assumption that domestic abuse victims will be automatically be eligible for special measures in court – such as giving evidence behind a screen, via live link or video-recorded interview, or in private. It also prohibits domestic abuse perpetrators from cross-examining their victims in family courts.

The proposed legal changes will create a new statutory definition of domestic abuse which includes economic abuse, and establish a domestic abuse commissioner.

The bill will also reform the system for serving protection orders against domestic abuse perpetrators, and provide a statutory footing for an existing scheme, known as Clare's Law, that allows people to request information on whether their partner has a history of domestic violence. The law is named after Clare Brown, who was murdered by her former partner.

Protection orders strengthened

A proposed new Domestic Abuse Protection Order (DAPO) will be easier to obtain through a variety of courts than the current eviction and protection orders, and will allow authorities to impose requirements on a perpetrator to protect the victim. These requirements may be prohibitive, such as restricting movement or communication, or positive, for example requiring the perpetrator to participate in a treatment programme.

   Read more: Support programmes for perpetrators of domestic abuse are controversial, but new research finds they bring benefits

Information held on the perpetrator as part of the DAPO will range from their name and address through to new relationships, visa applications and firearms licences. Electronic monitoring may also feature where a court deems it necessary to protect the victim.

Victims' wishes will now be considered if a DAPO is breached, for example if a perpetrator misses an anger management programme, or contacts a victim. Such breaches will either be treated – as they are now – as a civil offence and punished by two months in prison, or as a criminal offence, penalised by up to five years in prison. The extra flexibility is to avoid victims being reticent about reporting a breach due to the much harsher penalty.

Improving access to information

Under the Clare's Law scheme, or Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme which was rolled out nationally in 2014, victims or potential victims can obtain information via two different routes. One is the "right to ask", through which members of the public proactively request information, and the second is the "right to know" where the police initiate a disclosure on safeguarding grounds. Discrepancies that I've identified in my research between these two routes in terms of access, support and the amount of information provided, are likely to remain unaffected by the draft bill.

Approximately a third of respondents to the government's consultation on the bill hadn't heard of the DVDS or Clare's Law, despite the fact that two-thirds were victims.

The new statutory footing for the DVDS means that a duty will be placed on the police to have regard for the scheme's guidance. But this remains quite woolly, and it's not yet clear what kind of penalty the police would face for not following the guidance.

The DVDS doesn't give people the right to a disclosure. Instead, a threshold of credible risk of violence or harm must be determined by a multi-agency team before information that would otherwise be considered private can be shared with a member of the public on safeguarding grounds.

Inconsistencies surrounding the use of the scheme have been identified nationally across police forces and among applicants. Coupled with the low volume of disclosures, this means more public awareness is needed about how the DVDS operates.

Not all victims of domestic abuse may recognise the seriousness or severity of the behaviour a partner is demonstrating. If the information they provide on the nature of their partner's behaviour as part of a "right to ask" DVDS application does not meet the risk threshold, then their application will be rejected. As the draft bill proposes that online DVDS applications should be made easier, it's vital that online applicants know to provide as much detail as possible. This can be promoted alongside improving the DVDS's visibility and uptake, which 32% of respondents to the consultation suggested be done via social media.

The changes outlined in the draft bill indicate that the government is listening to domestic abuse victims, advocates and experts. The key will be whether or not these proposals can be sufficiently implemented, as they require a significant amount of ongoing funding and investment across public services and the voluntary sector.

Marian Duggan received funding from the Socio-Legal Studies Association for a research project into the Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme in 2016.
 But questions remain on how well a scheme to provide victims with information about abusive partners is working. Marian Duggan, Senior Lecturer in Criminology, University of Kent Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/109664 2019-01-20T18:55:01Z 2019-01-20T18:55:01Z Fleeing family violence to another country and taking your child is not 'abduction', but that's how the law sees it

The Hague Convention on child abduction was drafted to deal with fathers abducting their children across borders after losing custody, but it's applied mainly to mothers fleeing domestic violence. from shutterstock.com

Fiona (not her real name) came to Australia from New Zealand as a 19-year-old backpacker. Here, she met a man, got married and had two boys. The domestic violence began after her first son's birth, and Fiona endured it for several years.

In 2017, when her children were eight and ten, Fiona summoned the strength to leave her husband. Not being an Australian citizen, she found she wasn't eligible for government assistance, so Fiona fled back to New Zealand seeking protection and support.

Her husband immediately acted to have the children returned to Australia and, being a citizen, received free legal assistance from the government. Fiona was ordered to return her children to Australia.

This happened because under international law, Fiona's case is considered one of "child abduction". Under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction 1980, a child is considered "abducted" if he or she is removed by one parent without the other parent's consent.

The Convention was drafted in the late 1970s to deal with a parent abducting their children across borders after losing custody, or believing they would lose custody. It was never meant to be applied to cases involving mothers fleeing domestic violence.

   Read more: Are women escaping family violence overseas considered refugees?

The Convention makes no mention of domestic violence and has no protections for abused mothers. Despite this, for the past couple of decades, 70% of Hague cases have involved mothers fleeing domestic violence. When this law is applied to such cases, the outcomes can be catastrophic for abused women and children.

My research has explored how the Convention affects abused mothers who flee with their children across international borders. I have interviewed ten women, including Fiona, who were ordered to return their children to an abusive situation by Australian and other courts. All felt their voices were not heard and their domestic violence experiences not believed by the courts. They felt they were treated like criminals.

Catastrophic outcomes

The Sydney Family Court, in 2008, ordered a 24-year-old woman to return her two young sons to the UK, where they had been born. The woman had fled with her children to Sydney where her family lived, after years of abuse. Shortly after her return, she fled again to a refuge with her children. On the way there, she was brutally murdered by her estranged husband, on a public street, in front of her children and mother.

When the Convention was drafted, abductors were assumed to be non-primary carers who were taking the law into their own hands after having lost a custody battle. But it's now been recognised most so-called abductors are mothers who are the children's primary carers.

The Convention is the main international agreement that covers international parental child abduction. It provides an expeditious process to have a child returned to their home country. A child must have been abducted to, or retained in, a Hague Convention member country for the process to work. Nearly 100 countries – including Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the UK and the US – are signatories.

The Convention came into effect in Australia in 1987. It is implemented through the Family Law Act 1975 and the Australian Family Law (Child Abduction Convention) Regulations 1986. Australia's Central Authority, which is part of the Attorney-General's department, handles all cases of international parental child abduction to and from Australia. Its powers stem from the Convention and the Regulations are strictly enforced by the courts in all cases.

   Read more: How Victoria's family violence system fails some victims – by assuming they're perpetrators

Some exceptions in Australia's Regulations can be raised in dometic-violence related abduction cases. But lawyers I also interviewed in my research have said the bar has been set so high by the courts, these are too hard to meet. Also the "best interests of the child" test, which is applied in domestic family law cases, is not the test applied in Hague cases.

Fiona's husband was provided with free legal representation. Experienced lawyers worked with their counterparts in NZ to return the children to their father in Australia and the New Zealand Family Court cooperated by ordering the children's return.

Fiona told me that the Convention

discriminates against mothers and kids … and the judges and lawyers don't really consider the domestic violence the mothers have gone through and that the kids have witnessed.

Fiona and the children returned with just a bag of clothes. She received a small family assistance payment from Centrelink because the children were citizens, but no public housing, access to community services or free legal representation.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/254594/original/file-20190120-100282-1vajuwp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/254594/original/file-20190120-100282-1vajuwp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/254594/original/file-20190120-100282-1vajuwp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/254594/original/file-20190120-100282-1vajuwp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/254594/original/file-20190120-100282-1vajuwp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/254594/original/file-20190120-100282-1vajuwp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/254594/original/file-20190120-100282-1vajuwp.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Many women suffer alone and have no outside or government assistance. from shutterstock.com

Fiona's mother had to move from New Zealand to Brisbane to support her daugher and the children financially, emotionally, and physically. After one year, the Brisbane Family Court awarded Fiona's husband full parental responsibility for the children. Fiona returned to New Zealand, broke and devasted.

To this day, she survives on the generosity of women she befriended on social media who also lost their children to abusive partners. She is still being financially and emotionally abused by her ex, and struggles with anxiety and depression.

What other countries have done

Progress has been made in this area outside of Australia.

In a child abduction case considered by the European Court of Human Rights in 2010, the court held the Convention was obligated to consider general principles of international law and other human rights instruments. It also held the Convention "cannot be interpreted in a vacuum" and that the "best interests of the child must always be paramount."

There has also been a substantial change in US law, which has allowed courts to see domestic violence as a defence under the Convention.

In Australia, mothers fleeing domestic violence with their children still face harsh legal consequences. A woman fleeing with her child across borders within Australia can be penalised if she has violated family court orders without a reasonable excuse. A court may vary the orders, order her to pay the legal costs of the other parent, or a fine, and could even sentence her to imprisonment. She can also be charged with child stealing.

   Read more: 'Silent victims': royal commission recommends better protections for child victims of family violence

However, a mother fleeing from overseas to Australia is in a different situation. She will face serious legal consequences under the Convention. The US courts can criminally prosecute a mother who has abducted her child from that country and imprison her. Even if she is an Australian citizen, she may have to represent herself in court if she can't afford a lawyer. Unlike her abusive partner, she has no right to free lawyers.

It's rare for Australia's Legal Aid to fund these defences, as mothers generally don't have a good chance of succeeding in court. My analysis of Hague cases heard in Australia between 2015 and 2018 showed not one case where the mother was represented by Legal Aid.

Rita's story

Rita (not her real name) was an Australian citizen who met an American man in LA, where she had relocated for work, married and had a son. After experiencing domestic violence for two years, she fled back to Brisbane with her two-year old. She was given access to income and other Centrelink services, government housing, Medicare, pro bono legal representation and charity assistance.

Even so, after an application lodged by her husband, the Central Authority and the Brisbane Family Court ordered Rita to return her infant to LA. Rita also returned.

She received no housing, no medical assistance, and no free legal representation. She suffered from anxiety and depression, and could not work. If it had not been for a friend, she would have been homeless. She told me:

Because of the Convention, I could have been sent to federal prison in California, and have lost my son to someone who abused both of us. He had legal custody of my son and I had nothing, just because I tried to keep me and my son alive.

Australia's law makers need to take cases of this nature far more seriously. One step forward would be to add a separate "domestic violence defence" to the Regulations under which the Hague Convention is administered.

In doing so, abused mothers accused of abducting their children would have a better chance of defeating a return application. And our courts would not be able to continue putting women's lives and their children's safety in jeopardy.

This article previously said the Convention was drafted to deal with fathers who abducted their children across borders after losing custody. The wording has been replaced to indicate it could be any noncustodial parent.

This article previously referred to Legal Aid only being an option to an Australian citizen. This has now been removed.

Gina Masterton does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
 Under international law, a mother escaping domestic violence with her children to another country is seen as an abductor. She is often ordered to return the child leading to catastrophic consequences. Gina Masterton, PhD Candidate, Law School, Griffith University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/109436 2019-01-09T12:57:48Z 2019-01-09T12:57:48Z Why Sierra Leonean women don't feel protected by domestic violence laws

Women fear losing support for themselves and their children if they report violence. Direct Relief/Flickr, CC BY-NC-ND

Sierra Leone has a long history of sexual and gender based violence, dating back to the colonial era and stretching into the years of independence which began in 1961. The country's civil war, which raged between 1991 and 2002, brought international attention to the high levels of violence against women.

In this way, Sierra Leone is similar to many young democracies in Africa with a violent history; it struggles with patriarchal attitudes and high levels of violence against women and girls.

After the war, several legal changes were made to try and address this kind of violence. One was the Domestic Violence Act, ratified in 2007. It criminalises all forms of violence – physical, sexual, emotional and economic — against women and outlines strict punishments for perpetrators.

But, as I found during long-term research in Sierra Leone, very few women – especially married women – feel genuinely protected by this law, and other similar ones. There are a few reasons for this.

One is that in Sierra Leone some forms of violence are considered necessary and acceptable within relationships. Another is that women who do report face enormous stigma and the risk of losing security for themselves and their children. Finally, the state legal system and the police don't prioritise cases involving married women – they often tell women to resolve the matter privately rather than going through the courts.

If Sierra Leone is to tackle the problem of domestic violence, lawmakers and the authorities need to understand the social dynamics around love and violence. They also need to support and protect women who report violence, to ensure they don't experience stigma and further violence from their partners, families and communities.

"Acceptable" violence

The idea that many forms of violence in relationships are problematic but somehow necessary is popular in Sierra Leone. People believe that violence should be mediated rather than eradicated.

Love and violence are not necessarily seen as opposites in relationships. As I discovered in the course of my research, Sierra Leoneans distinguish carefully between different forms and effects of violence. Violence is unacceptable if it intended to harm and if there's no way to restore the harm done.

But certain kinds of violence are considered acceptable if they attempt to help or protect a person. During 13 months of fieldwork in the capital city Freetown I examined how relationships are lived and investigated the role that violence plays in romantic relationships.

I wanted to know which acts were perceived as violence, and how such violence was endured, accepted, rejected and negotiated. Another focus was on how people, particularly women, mediate and sanction violence in relationships between each other, within households and communities, as well as through the police and in the courts.

I was often told that sanctioning a partner for "misbehaving" was necessary for a respectful and successful relationship.

Some violence between partners can be executed, endured and even expected as a demonstration of affection, a display of emotions and a form of communication.

One man, Diamond, told me:

Real love must come with passion and passion is also jealousy. When you are jealous your heart will become warm too much. Then there is some slapping or some beating. But it is part of the love.

In instances where women feel that they cannot neatly separate love from an act of violence and wish to continue a relationship, they don't turn to the police as this would put their relationship in danger. Rather, they report to their household or to community elders who then try to mediate between the partners.

A burden on women

Another important social dynamic that's at play in Sierra Leone is that while publicly men are seen as dominant or "on top" and women as "the weaker sex", in everyday life women are often recognised as emotionally and socially stronger and more capable of directing and managing social units.

This means that women are often held responsible for their husbands' and sons' actions. So, reporting a spouse for violence can be regarded as reporting oneself for failing to prevent such behaviour.

Poverty and social class play a role, too. Many women in Sierra Leone struggle to provide for themselves, their children and their families.

If a woman reports a case to the police, the marriage usually dissolves and she can lose out on security and support. This makes it far easier for employed or wealthy women to report domestic violence. But such women are in the minority.

Mistrust of courts

One of the big hurdles to reporting domestic violence is the legal system itself. As is the case in many former colonies, the legal system is fragmented between the state courts, traditional or lower courts, and mediation by communities and households.

Women who turn to the state can wait years for their cases to be completed; their families and communities, who mistrust the formal court system, often refuse to testify.

Resources are scarce in the state system. So the state courts and the police tend to prioritise cases of violence against children, or incidents where young girls have been raped by strangers. Married, middle-aged women are not a priority. They are often asked to try to settle their matter privately, through community or family mediation.

Reporting domestic violence to the police is riskier than talking with families and communities, seeking solutions and even reparations.

To change this, efforts should be undertaken to de-stigmatise police reporting and to offer women and their children protection after reporting. Temporary housing projects would be an option. Additionally, women must be empowered to find official employment so that they can make choices independently from their social networks.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with a link about Sierra Leone's history that more accurately reflects the author's views and research.

Luisa T. Schneider received funding from Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes; School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography, Oxford University; Aylmer Award St. Peter's College, Oxford University; Royal Anthropological Institute (RAI)/Sutasoma Award.
 Very few women, especially those married, feel protected by the domestic violence laws in Sierra Leone. Luisa T. Schneider, Postdoctoral research fellow, Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/109509 2019-01-09T04:12:19Z 2019-01-09T04:12:19Z Are women escaping family violence overseas considered refugees?
Saudi teenager Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun's story has travelled around the world this week, highlighting Saudi Arabia's repressive treatment of women and that not only those who seek asylum by sea face perilous journeys to safety.

For now, al-Qunun remains in Thailand, and it's been reported the UN's refugee agency (UNHCR) has deemed her to be a refugee. Australia has said it will consider granting her asylum.

Reports say al-Qunun fears, if she is returned to Saudi Arabia, she will be abused and killed by her family for renouncing Islam and asserting her independence. Sadly, al-Qunun's fear of being harmed by those closest to her is not unique.

Worldwide, an estimated 35% of women have experienced family or domestic violence. In some countries, the figure is closer to 70%. Not all those at risk will be entitled to international refugee protection, however. Only those who meet the definition of a "refugee" can make a valid claim for asylum.

Women fleeing family and domestic violence must deal with a unique range of legal and practical hurdles before the threat of being returned will truly have passed.

Refugee protection for gendered violence

The international refugee convention of 1951 defines a "refugee" as a person outside their own country who fears persecution because of their race, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.

   Read more: Explainer: how Australia decides who is a genuine refugee

This legal definition was devised in Europe in the aftermath of the second world war, primarily with the political refugee in mind. Although the convention isn't limited to those fleeing political persecution, women fleeing gender-based violence must overcome a number of hurdles to show they meet the definition's criteria.

The most fundamental requirement for refugee protection is that the applicant be outside her country of origin. This alone precludes most women from accessing international protection. The cost of travel and the danger it entails – women and girls face heightened risks of sexual violence, trafficking and exploitation during their journeys – make seeking asylum a dangerous endeavour.

For women living under repressive regimes such as in Saudi Arabia, where permission to travel is required from a male guardian, leaving the country may be impossible. For those who do leave, trying to prove they are at risk of persecution poses further challenges.

Beyond obvious physical signs of mistreatment, obtaining evidence of domestic violence is notoriously difficult. In most refugee cases, the primary means of establishing the applicant's claim to asylum is her testimony. Lasting effects of trauma, potentially significant cultural and language barriers, and being surrounded by often male interpreters, decision-makers and legal representatives, can make the burden of proof for such women overwhelming.

Moreover, the refugee definition itself was not designed with the experiences of women in mind. In cases like al-Qunun's, failure to conform to religious expectations will likely play a role. But the tendency of refugee status decision-makers has been to see violence by family members as a private matter, and not attributable to one of the five grounds of persecution: race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group and political opinion.

When refugee claims involving family and domestic violence succeed, it is usually on the basis women may constitute a particular social group. Accepting that women in a particular country constitute a particular social group allows refugee status decision-makers to provide protection to women who fear persecution because they are women.

The UNHCR states that women are a clear example of a social group "defined by innate and immutable characteristics, and who are frequently treated differently than men".

   Read more: Do abused women need asylum? 4 essential reads

However, the worldwide prevalence of family and domestic violence, coupled with concerns about "opening the floodgates" to women seeking asylum, have seen this approach to gender-based refugee claims rejected on a regular basis.

What about in Australia?

The universal definition of a refugee has been incorporated into Australia's domestic legislation – the Migration Act of 1958. In addition, Australia's refugee status decision-makers routinely consider the claims of women at risk of family and domestic violence, trafficking, forced marriage and so-called honour killings if returned to their home country.

Two recent refugee decisions by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal provide insight into how Australian decision-makers approach such claims.

In the first, the Tribunal held the violence experienced by a Turkish woman, who had been twice hospitalised due to injuries inflicted by her husband, was personal in nature. So, it could not be attributed to one of the five grounds of persecution.

Nevertheless, her claim was upheld on the basis Turkish authorities failed to protect her from such violence. Because of the country's lack of enforcement of laws protecting women and widespread social attitudes linking domestic violence with family honour, the applicant was considered a member of a particular social group – women.

The second case concerned a refugee claim by a mother of five from Papua New Guinea, who had experienced repeated attacks by her husband and his family members for refusing to accept her husband's infidelity. The Tribunal rejected the proposition women from Papua New Guinea constituted a particular social group, due to their diverse ages, backgrounds, religions and economic circumstances.

However, it accepted the more narrowly defined groups "married women in Papua New Guinea" and "married women in Papua New Guinea for whom a bride price has been paid" as particular social groups and awarded refugee status on this basis.

In some countries, such as Ireland and South Africa, "sex" or "gender" has been added as a potential ground of persecution in domestic legislation. This removes the need to argue whether women are a particular social group in any given society.

Australia has adopted a complementary protection regime, which offers additional protections to people at risk of such harms as torture or inhumane treatment. Australia also has a specific visa for refugee "women-at-risk".

   Read more: Sexual and domestic violence: the hidden reasons why Mexican women flee their homes

Individual refugee status decision-makers have also set out alternative paths for protecting women from family and domestic violence. In a notable New Zealand case, the decision-maker held the risk of domestic violence faced by the applicant was for reasons of her political opinion. They described her decision to leave her husband as an act of "self-emancipation" from the "structures of power and inequality" that had sanctioned the abusive relationship.

Even though the UNHCR has determined al-Qunun is a refugee, her future remains uncertain. Thailand is not a party to the refugee convention and there are doubts as to whether she would receive effective protection there. Resettlement in a country such as Australia is possible, but obtaining the woman-at-risk visa would be at the discretion of the government.

The attention on al-Qunun should at least help ensure her claim for protection gets the consideration it requires. Let's hope it generates similar support for the countless other women in urgent need of international protection.

This article has been updated in light of the UNHCR finding Rahaf Mohammed al-Qunun to be a refugee.

Tamara Wood does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
 The refugee convention wasn't designed with women in mind. Women fleeing domestic violence and asking for asylum face many barriers to qualifying for protection under international law. Tamara Wood, Centre Affiliate, Andrew and Renata Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/107886 2018-12-05T18:55:07Z 2018-12-05T18:55:07Z How sport can tackle violence against women and girls

Thursday night football in the community of Wadeye, about 420 kilometres south-west of Darwin in the Northern Territory. J. Louth

Sport is central to the lives of many Australians. This isn't simply a reference to participation levels, but the importance of sport as a social institution. Organised sport, from the elite level though to local community clubs, is a part of a complex social ecology that is an important part of our lives.

This means it is vital that we acknowledge sport as a crucial learning place for gendered relations. In our research, we examined how sport can be used as a "hook" to start conversations with men and boys around domestic violence and respectful relationships. Community leaders and role models can be harnessed to instil healthy attitudes in young men. In their absence, the sporting field can serve to sustain the drivers of violence against women and girls.

   Read more: Violence towards women in the video game Red Dead Redemption 2 evokes toxic masculinity

Working with Power Community Limited, the community arm of the Port Adelaide Football Club and the NO MORE program in the Northern Territory, we examined the effectiveness of primary prevention family and domestic violence programs aimed at men and boys in distinctly different environments. Port Adelaide's Power to End Violence Against Women program targets year 10 boys, primarily in metropolitan schools across Adelaide, while the NO MORE program, with a focus on football clubs, works across the NT, with an emphasis on remote Indigenous communities.

Sport is a social glue and a focal point of activity for many families. At a much larger scale, our very sense of nation and what it is to be "Australian" is often defined through sporting prowess. Sport also feeds into an Indigenous sense of manhood, so long as their indigeneity remains unthreatening to the broader Australian community. Outward displays of indigeneity that do not conform are loudly rejected - think former AFL star Adam Goodes and his "war dance".

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/248910/original/file-20181205-133109-wfhkb8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/248910/original/file-20181205-133109-wfhkb8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248910/original/file-20181205-133109-wfhkb8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248910/original/file-20181205-133109-wfhkb8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248910/original/file-20181205-133109-wfhkb8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248910/original/file-20181205-133109-wfhkb8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248910/original/file-20181205-133109-wfhkb8.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Former AFL star for the Sydney Swans was booed for weeks after he performed a war dance directed at opposition fans. Dan Himbrechts/AAP

What it is to be a man is performed through sport. Within this environment, boys are socialised to be tough, competitive, and to win – success and status are core to becoming and being a man.

   Read more: Un-designing masculinities: K-pop and the new global man?

In the focus groups for participants from the Port Adelaide program, one student powerfully stated:

men are taught not to show emotions … or you'll be cut from the crop.

It is a sentiment that drives home how early boys are taught that they are measured against a particular idea of manliness.

However, we were also able to show that positive messages "stick". Year 11 students, who had taken part in the program the previous year, recalled content on respectful relationships and positive bystanding. One student was adamant that:

…after [doing] this course it is wrong not to step in.

The use of high-profile footballers assisted with the retention of key messages. Students and teachers universally saw the value in having AFL footballers contribute to the delivery of the program as a mechanism to "cut through" and get the attention of participants.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/248417/original/file-20181203-194938-cem9lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/248417/original/file-20181203-194938-cem9lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248417/original/file-20181203-194938-cem9lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248417/original/file-20181203-194938-cem9lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=358&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248417/original/file-20181203-194938-cem9lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248417/original/file-20181203-194938-cem9lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248417/original/file-20181203-194938-cem9lo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Port Adelaide Player Ambassador Ollie Wines with students as part of the Power to End Violence Against Women program. PAFC

The NO MORE program works with a range of stakeholders, including men's groups and football clubs. Indeed, on the Tiwi Islands, a men's group member declared that "It's Aussie Rules or it's nothing".

Another Tiwi Islander made the point that by fixing themselves, they were fixing their community. Bridging between sport and primary prevention programs made complete sense to these men. They also spoke about the need for it to be taken into their schools as part of an Aboriginal-led movement.

Charlie King, the founder of NO MORE, says this is indicative of every remote community that he has spent time in. For Charlie, an ABC sports commentator and Gurindji man, you will always "find small group of men who want to make a difference."

In Ngukurr, in southeast Arnhem Land, we observed a NO MORE march that snaked its way through the community before gathering on the football oval. There the community came together to link arms as a show strength and connectedness to say "no more" to family and domestic violence.

While the beginning of a community movement and activation could be sensed, there was an understanding that this would take time. As one of the Elders who planned the event noted:

…you're looking at generation after generation. This is a generational plan … because you might be a father and you might be a mother later on, it's about what sorts of seeds you're planting.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/248419/original/file-20181203-194941-2mx3xh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/248419/original/file-20181203-194941-2mx3xh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248419/original/file-20181203-194941-2mx3xh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248419/original/file-20181203-194941-2mx3xh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248419/original/file-20181203-194941-2mx3xh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248419/original/file-20181203-194941-2mx3xh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/248419/original/file-20181203-194941-2mx3xh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Community members link arms on the football oval to say 'no more' to family and domestic Violence, Ngukurr 2018. J. Louth

The comment is not dissimilar to one made by an AFL player involved in the Port Adelaide program: "The purpose is to impact the generations … getting the younger generations to know that [violence against women] is an issue and not to tolerate it."

These are certainly gains, but care needs to be taken to ensure that the programs are not simply activating an ethos of "real men don't hit women". Such a view, while advocating nonviolence, is one-dimensional and limited in that it arises from the very norms and attitudes that sustain regimes of gendered violence.

Sporting clubs, whether elite or local, are only just starting to examine their contribution to the reproduction of values and attitudes that permit behaviours – including silence – that contribute to violence against women.

With the onset of the #MeToo movement and wider anti-domestic violence campaigns, the footballing world has the chance to work with this momentum to change the narrative and disrupt harmful and systemic behaviours.

Jonathon Louth receives funding from CatholicCare NT and Centacare Catholic Family Services
 Primary prevention programs with a footballing focus aim to change behaviours and attitudes among men towards women. Jonathon Louth, Research Fellow, Australian Centre for Community Services Research, Flinders University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/107363 2018-11-29T19:11:16Z 2018-11-29T19:11:16Z Four in ten Australians think women lie about being victims of sexual assault

Two in five Australian women have experienced physical or sexual violence. Jorge Flores

Four in ten Australians (42%) think sexual assault accusations are a way of getting back at men, according to the fourth National Community Attitudes Survey (NCAS) on violence against women, released today.

Almost the same proportion (43%) believe women "make up" claims of abuse when going through child custody battles in court.

Yet research shows false allegations are rare. In fact, sexual assault, harassment and domestic violence are _under-reported to police.

Violence against women is common, with two out of every five Australian women experiencing some form of physical or sexual violence since the age of 15, and much of it from a male partner or ex-partner.

NCAS is a federally funded survey conducted by the independent research organisation ANROWS in 2017. It involved 17,500 phone interviews with a representative sample of Australians aged 16 years and older. It's the third such national survey, allowing us to compare responses with those in 2009 and 2013.

   Read more: Rape culture: why our community attitudes to sexual violence matter

It's not all bad news. The results show a majority of Australians understand that physical assault, emotional abuse and controlling behaviour are forms of violence against women, and are common in our community.

Consistent investment in programs and campaigns has had a positive impact on reducing attitudes that support violence such as minimising and excusing. Out of a score of 100, the average score has reduced from 36 in 2013 to 33 in 2017.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247757/original/file-20181128-32221-g391hi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247757/original/file-20181128-32221-g391hi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=219&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247757/original/file-20181128-32221-g391hi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=219&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247757/original/file-20181128-32221-g391hi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=219&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247757/original/file-20181128-32221-g391hi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=276&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247757/original/file-20181128-32221-g391hi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=276&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247757/original/file-20181128-32221-g391hi.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=276&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
  ANROWS

Blaming the victim

The survey found one in three Australians believe women are partly responsible for relationship violence if they do not leave a violent partner (32%).

Another third (30%) believe if a woman sends a nude image to her partner, she is partly responsible if he shares it without her permission.

When questions are asked about the role of alcohol in relation to violence, 8% attribute responsibility and blame to women who were raped while alcohol- or drug-affected. Some 12% of Australians absolve men of blame if they are alcohol- or drug-affected at the time they perpetrate rape.

Two out of ten Australians (21%) believe because women express themselves sexually in public it's not surprising men think they can touch them without permission.

   Read more: 'Be careful posting images online' is just another form of modern-day victim-blaming

When victim-blaming attitudes are held by a substantial proportion of people, or influential people such as police, judges and health professionals, they can present barriers to victims seeking support or reporting the abuse.

Such attitudes also shift responsibility away from the perpetrators of violence, contributing to a culture in which perpetrator behaviour is at best not clearly condemned, or at worst, is actively condoned.

Disregard for consent

One in ten Australians believe if a woman is drunk and starts having sex with a man, but then falls asleep, it is understandable if he continues to have sex with her.

The survey also asked Australians to respond to a scenario where a woman takes her husband into the bedroom, starts kissing him, then pushes him away, not wanting to continue with sex. More than one in ten (15%) believed her husband would have been justified in having sex with her anyway.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247882/original/file-20181129-170250-rfbpp6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247882/original/file-20181129-170250-rfbpp6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247882/original/file-20181129-170250-rfbpp6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247882/original/file-20181129-170250-rfbpp6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247882/original/file-20181129-170250-rfbpp6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247882/original/file-20181129-170250-rfbpp6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247882/original/file-20181129-170250-rfbpp6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Many Australians seem unclear of what constitutes consent. Nicolas Thomas

Disregarding consent for touching women, sending nude photos or persisting with sex when a woman does not, or cannot give consent, are criminal offences in Australia.

These findings are significant because they indicate a concerning proportion of Australians are unclear about what constitutes consent, and the line between consensual sex and coercion.

Mistrusting women's reports

As well as thinking women make up claims of abuse, one quarter (23%) of Australians believe women exaggerate the problem of male violence.

Almost a third (31%) believe that a lot of times women who say they were raped had "led the man on" and then had regrets.

Attitudes that suggest women lie to "get back at men" are particularly concerning in light of the high levels of violence against women, as well as under-reporting of these crimes. The fear of not being believed or taken seriously presents a barrier for women seeking help and support.

   Read more: Australians still trivialise and excuse violence against women

Attitudes are a barometer of socially acceptable behaviour – and changing attitudes is often the first step toward changing behaviour. Attitudes can mean a perpetrator being held to account, instead of his behaviour being ignored. Or a bystander taking action, rather than turning a blind eye.

And now for the good news

One of the pillars of The National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children 2010 – 2022 has been to support attitude change as a first step to reducing prevalence of violence against women.

The NCAS survey shows there has been an increase in the understanding of violence against women, moving from an average score of 64 to 70, and improvement in support for gender equality moving from an average score of 64 to 66.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247758/original/file-20181128-32191-1luwim9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247758/original/file-20181128-32191-1luwim9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=212&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247758/original/file-20181128-32191-1luwim9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=212&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247758/original/file-20181128-32191-1luwim9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=212&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247758/original/file-20181128-32191-1luwim9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=266&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247758/original/file-20181128-32191-1luwim9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=266&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247758/original/file-20181128-32191-1luwim9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=266&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Knowledge of violence against women. ANROWS

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247759/original/file-20181128-32197-u7wmeb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/247759/original/file-20181128-32197-u7wmeb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=222&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247759/original/file-20181128-32197-u7wmeb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=222&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247759/original/file-20181128-32197-u7wmeb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=222&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247759/original/file-20181128-32197-u7wmeb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=279&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247759/original/file-20181128-32197-u7wmeb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=279&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/247759/original/file-20181128-32197-u7wmeb.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=279&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Support for gender equality. ANROWS

Exploring the detail of the survey questions shows an improvement on 27 of the 36 individual questions asked in both 2013 and 2017.

While there are specific areas of concern, Australians' knowledge of, and attitudes towards, violence against women and gender equality are gradually improving. Most Australians do not endorse this violence.

Australian governments have invested heavily in campaigns and programs to reduce men's violence against women over the past ten years and the current NCAS results show that there have been some rewards.

Changing attitudes and improving knowledge takes time, as well as continued policy and program efforts. It's vital that governments, organisations and communities across Australia keep up the momentum if we are to ultimately see the end of attitudes that allow violence against women to occur. http://ncas.anrows.org.au

This article was co-authored by Violeta Politoff, Senior Researcher for ANROWS on the National Community Attitudes Survey on Violence against Women.

The National Sexual Assault, Family and Domestic Violence Counselling Line – 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week for any Australian who has experienced, or is at risk of, family and domestic violence and/or sexual assault.

Kristin Diemer is a Chief Investigator for the National Community Attitudes Survey on Violence Against Women and receives funding from ANROWS (Australian National Research Organisation for Women's Safety).0

Anastasia Powell receives funding from the Australian Research Council, and Criminology Research Council. She is a Chief Investigator for the National Community Attitudes Survey on Violence Against Women and receives funding from ANROWS (Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety). Anastasia is also a member of the board of directors of Our Watch, Australia's national foundation for the prevention of violence against women.

Kim Webster is a PhD student at the University of Melbourne writing her thesis on the NCAS. She has also been involved in project management of the NCAS since 2009.
 Australians are more aware of domestic violence and sexual assault than before. But a worrying proportion blame victims for abuse, think women are lying, and don't believe consent is always necessary. Kristin Diemer, Senior Research Fellow, University of Melbourne Anastasia Powell, Associate Professor and ARC DECRA Fellow, Criminology and Justice Studies, RMIT University Kim Webster, PhD candidate, University of Melbourne Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/106527 2018-11-15T23:23:53Z 2018-11-15T23:23:53Z Man who burnt his wife alive gets at least 27 years' jail, but not life – as victim was no stranger

Domestic killings have long been treated as somehow less serious than when random strangers are killed. Shutterstock

Last week in the New South Wales Supreme Court, Justice David Davies sentenced a 45-year-old man found guilty of murdering his wife to a maximum of 36 years with a minimum non-parole period of 27 years. He had burned her alive in the family home in front of their two children, and had blocked her escape. The crime involved "gratuitous cruelty", said Justice Davies, adding it was "difficult to imagine the horror" of the victim's last minutes alive. Her remains were found between a bed and a window blocked by bars.

During sentencing submissions, the Crown argued the case was an example of the worst possible category of murder, and called for a life sentence. The man and his victim cannot be identified for legal reasons.

Yet, Justice Davies did not hand down the maximum penalty for murder, claiming the prisoner did not require a life sentence as his victim was not "unknown" to him:

This was a murder committed, not at large against a person unknown to the offender, by a person with no prior criminal record. I do not mean to suggest thereby that the murder of a spouse or a partner is any less serious than the murder of a stranger. However, it is a matter which is relevant to the issue of community protection.

Community protection is one of a number of issues judges weigh up when sentencing.

   Read more: After a deadly month for domestic violence, the message doesn't appear to be getting through

Justice Davies also said the offender would be "a relatively old man by the time of his release", and would thus pose a lower risk to the community. He noted the sentence is in line with other sentences in New South Wales, where, since 1991, a life sentence had been given only in cases of murder of a child alongside the female partner. A spokesperson for the NSW director of public prosecutions told us a possible appeal is still being considered.

The outcome of this case was a conviction for murder, and judicial acknowledgement of the serious violence and cruelty associated the perpetrator's murder of his wife. But the intimate relationship between the perpetrator and victim was used to characterise the crime as falling short of the worst examples of murder. These approaches are common in the criminal law's long-standing response to family violence.

A hierarchy of violence

Examining social and legal attitudes towards family violence shows there is a hierarchy of violence, where gendered assaults on family members are routinely viewed as considerably less serious than assaults on strangers. This hierarchy has pragmatic social and legal implications influencing reporting, policing and prosecution of family violence, with those crimes often remaining hidden in the private sphere of the home.

In sentencing decisions, domestic violence offenders are seen as posing a lower threat to the community at large. This framing of such crimes erases the threats to family members from these offenders as being regarded as "community" risk. As a result, families are seen as not deserving the same level of protection as other citizens. Further, criminological research shows serious family violence perpetrators do have versatile offending histories.

The relative public invisibility of family violence has a long history in law and culture, with domestic violence and intimate partner violence regularly being treated as less serious than offences against strangers.

1950s: familial sexual offences

In Australia in the 1950s, the nuclear family was the core of social organisation. Little public comment was made on intra-familial sexual abuse: it was largely a crime hidden from public discourse outside the criminal law and social welfare settings. Yet, higher courts dealt quite frequently with sexual abuse within the family, particularly criminal assaults on children by fathers and stepfathers.

Defendants, lawyers, judges and witnesses regularly explained familial sexual assaults as different to other forms of sexual crime. Often, familial sexual offences were often not understood as violence at all, but constructed as a problem of household morals (a husband's alcoholism, a wife's neglect, a child's behaviour).

   Read more: Infographic: A snapshot of domestic violence in Australia

Courts were told that children would soon forget about the assault, or that the victim had not been "harmed" by the abuse, especially in cases of non-penetrative sex. An assault might have been criminal, but this did not mean that it was necessarily understood as abusive.

Judges' statements from the period show that familial sexual abuse was seen as less serious than if a man had offended outside his family. In one sentencing hearing in 1954, an offender (who had pleaded guilty to the indecent assault of his 14-year-old daughter) was given a more lenient sentence, as the judge explained he had not assaulted children other "than his own". The familial tie in this case was seen to lessen the severity of the crime.

Similarly, violence on intimate partners could also be understood as less serious than that against strangers.

1970s: rape in marriage

Until the 1970s and 1980s in Australia, rape in marriage was not a crime: following British common law, a husband had specific immunity from being charged with raping his wife. Under legal interpretations established in the eighteenth century, it was assumed that a wife gave her consent to sex for the life of the marriage, whether or not she agreed to an individual act of intercourse.

   Read more: Money plays a role in family violence across cultures

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 Public anger is growing over entrenched attitudes to domestic violence. Glenn Hunt/AAP

By the 1970s, a husband's immunity had come into question. In part, this was due to rising rates of separation and divorce, around the key question: in the case of a family separation, when exactly did his right to sex end? It was questioned too by feminist agitation, as women's liberationists argued that a married woman should not have fewer rights to bodily autonomy than a single woman.

We might now see criminalising rape in marriage as a popular, sensible reform. Yet there was surprising opposition to it across Australia. Over and over, public debate about rape in marriage showed that in both the law and in Australian culture, the rape of a man's own wife was seen as less serious than "real rape" by a stranger.

Family violence

In Australian law and culture, it remains difficult to imagine the family as a site of violence, harm and trauma. As these case studies show, the minimisation of family violence has a long history.

Sentencing in intimate partner homicides is part of an enduring legacy of treating family violence as less serious than other forms of violence. It's time we broke with the past and reframed our hierarchies of violence.

Lisa Featherstone receives funding for the ARC Discovery Project 2015-2018 'Sexual Offences, Legal Responses, and Public Perceptions: 1880s-1980s'

Andy Kaladelfos receives funding for the ARC Discovery Project 2015-2018 'Sexual Offences, Legal Responses, and Public Perceptions: 1880s-1980s'
 The Crown said this case was an example of the worst type of murder, but the judge disagreed, arguing the killer, when freed, would be less of a threat to the wider community than some other killers. Lisa Featherstone, Associate Professor in Australian History and the History of Sexuality, The University of Queensland Andy Kaladelfos, Lecturer in Criminology, School of Social Sciences, UNSW Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/104308 2018-11-12T22:10:35Z 2018-11-12T22:10:35Z Dementia's hidden darkness: Violence and domestic abuse

Dementia patients are often the perpetrators and often the victims of abuse. Research also shows that a medical history of head injury can more than double the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease in some populations, even after many years. (Shutterstock)

Every week in my neurology clinic, I see patients and their families who are dealing with the realities of dementia. Of the many people I encounter, these three stories highlight a growing health issue that I feel is neglected — the complex relationship between dementia and domestic violence.

The first is a story of confusion:

"Dad is a nice guy, always has been. But now, because of the Alzheimer's, he's confused most of the time — and Mom isn't coping. She doesn't know what to do and she is frustrated. It started with her twisting his arm to get him to do things, but now she even hits him sometimes."

The second is a story of public safety:

"The dementia has changed him — he's not the same man I fell in love with and married so many years ago. He gets suspicious and angry a lot. He screams at me, he yells at our son, he shouts at the postman. He has even punched the caregiver who comes to help him bathe. I suppose we can cope, but I'm worried. We have two shotguns and a rifle in our basement — what do you think I should do with them?"

The third is a scene of abuse:

"I got divorced a long time ago because he used to hit me … a lot. He would get drunk every Saturday night and beat me up. He even knocked me out cold, probably five or six times. I haven't seen him in more than 30 years, but I still feel that he is hurting me. Do you think all of these beatings caused my dementia? Did that bastard cause my dementia?"

These stories are united by a common theme: the complex relationship between dementia and domestic violence. Today, both are commonplace. One in 10 people over 65 years of age in the United States have dementia, typically Alzheimer's disease (AD), and about one in four women and one in seven men in the U.S. experience severe physical abuse by an intimate partner at some point during their life.

Alarmingly, evidence now suggests that there may be a complex but definitive link between dementia and domestic abuse. Notably, one case-control study that I carried out with colleagues shows that spousal abuse could be associated with the development of Alzheimer's.

Caregiver abuse

Abuse of older people is not a new problem. Elder abuse is a growing concern on a societal level, with more seniors reporting incidents of abuse and violence. The abuser may be a partner, a relative, a friend or a paid caregiver.

Most abuse tends to take place in the privacy and supposed safety of the home — and so it's typically a hidden problem. Yet, anywhere between five to 20 per cent of seniors globally may be physically abused, while up to 55 per cent may be abused in other ways.

 <img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244413/original/file-20181107-74754-w7m92u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/244413/original/file-20181107-74754-w7m92u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244413/original/file-20181107-74754-w7m92u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244413/original/file-20181107-74754-w7m92u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244413/original/file-20181107-74754-w7m92u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244413/original/file-20181107-74754-w7m92u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/244413/original/file-20181107-74754-w7m92u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
 Needing help with simple everyday tasks can be a huge blow to the sense of self and pride of someone dealing with dementia. (Shutterstock)

Patients with dementia are especially vulnerable to this disturbing trend. Unsurprisingly, caring for patients with dementia requires time and patience and, as with any advanced medical care, practice.

Dealing with dementia's intellectual impairments can be especially challenging for unprepared caregivers and family members, and this frustration can sometimes lead to abuse.

Violent mood swings

Conversely, sometimes the person with dementia is the initiator of the violence rather than the recipient. The onset of dementia is known to coincide with the development of aggressive and angry tendencies. One study found that almost 20 per cent of new dementia patients have behaved aggressively towards caregivers, including loved ones they've known for years.

It's not hard to understand why. In the early phases of the disease, patients are acutely aware of the changes happening to their memories and thoughts and regularly feel overwhelmed. As the disease progresses, they may need help dressing, bathing or performing simple everyday activities, which they have done for themselves, without help, for all of their lives.

This can be devastating to a person's pride or sense of self; sometimes these emotions can manifest as unusually aggressive or hostile behaviour. Dementia can also trigger violent mood swings and outbursts. At times, these can be extreme; a patient may seem perfectly fine one moment, then be screaming and overtly physical the next.

As yet, it's a mystery as to why these outbursts occur. But it is possible that changes in the brain's neurochemistry may destabilize moods and cause more violent emotions.

'Punch drunk'

Finally, there is the possibility that abuse that occurred decades ago could be contributing to the onset of dementia today. There has been much debate as to whether head trauma can lead to dementia or Alzheimer's disease later in life.

Typically, associations have been vague, and it seemed unlikely that trauma from years ago, with no other apparent effects, could somehow lead to dementia. But we now appreciate that head trauma can be a major risk factor for dementia and Alzheimer's. In fact, as far back as 1928, the term "punch drunk" was introduced to describe a disorder of progressive dementia that was first seen in boxers.

This was later called "dementia pugilistica" and is known today as chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Recent research suggests that concussions and other traumatic brain injuries may increase the early brain pathologies that lead to the development of Alzheimer's later on.

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 'Punch drunk' was a term used to describe the behaviour of boxers who had suffered repeated severe blows to the head. (Shutterstock)

Also, a medical history of head injury can more than double the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease in some populations, even after many years.

With the World Health Organization estimating that up to 30 per cent of women worldwide have experienced violence from an intimate partner, the global burden of domestic abuse on Alzheimer's may be a critical factor.

A call to action

Despite its obvious significance, this dementia and domestic violence overlap remains under-recognized and incompletely understood. It's not a new problem, but because it tends to be conveniently ignored, it has yet to garner proper scientific scrutiny.

   Read more: Traumatic brain injury: The unseen impact of domestic violence

The growing prevalence of both dementia and domestic violence is worrisome. We need to appreciate the clear relationship between Alzheimer's and domestic violence.

As science grapples with these uncomfortable questions over the years to come, stopping the spread of domestic violence seems like an obvious, and feasible first step.

Dementia is more than just three stories or some ambiguous science; it is a call to action.

Donald Weaver does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
 From aggressive patients with Alzheimer's to frustrated caregivers, dementia is increasingly entwined with violence in private homes and residential facilities. Donald Weaver, Professor of Chemistry and Director of Krembil Research Institute, University Health Network, University of Toronto Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/106171 2018-11-01T04:53:55Z 2018-11-01T04:53:55Z Politics with Michelle Grattan: Anne Summers on #MeToo and women in politics

Anne Summers, who has worn many hats during her career - journalist, editor, activist, senior public servant, and prime ministerial advisor - is concerned about the slow progress in Australia in addressing sexual harassment and assault.

"I don't know what it is that is holding [MeToo] back here," Summers tells The Conversation. She believes there should be more naming of perpetrators, with the proviso that "obviously it's got to be justified, obviously you don't do it rashly and without and very credible evidence".

"I don't see why you can't name somebody who has been shown to have abused his position like that," she said.

Summers, who's long campaigned on the issue of violence against women, declares "a forensic approach is urgent". "I worry some of the research is not really problem-solving and focusing on how to end violence. It's seeking more to understand the impact - and I think we already know the impact."

Michelle Grattan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
 Anne Summers is concerned about the slow progress in Australia in addressing sexual harassment and assault. Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives. tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/105568 2018-10-31T18:55:37Z 2018-10-31T18:55:37Z After a deadly month for domestic violence, the message doesn't appear to be getting through

Australia has launched countless domestic violence campaigns over the years. So, why haven't they shifted public attitudes on the problem?  Joe Castro/AAP

On average, at least one woman is killed every week at the hands of a current or former partner in Australia. Last month, the numbers were even more alarming. Nine women were killed in October - seven allegedly in the context of a current or former intimate relationship, the other two also suspected to have died at the hands of male perpetrators.

While these deaths are a disturbing reflection of the pervasive nature of violence against women in Australia, they have largely gone unnoticed. Aside from a small number of female journalists who called on Australia's leaders to address the crisis, the media more broadly, as well as governments and the wider public, have mostly remained silent.

These recent incidents raise questions around the effectiveness of awareness and educational campaigns developed under Australia's National Plan to Reduce Violence Against Women and their Children, released in 2011 to improve the country's response to domestic violence.

   Read more: The Violence Against Women Act is unlikely to reduce intimate partner violence – here's why

How well are current awareness campaigns faring?

Research suggests that campaigns aimed at raising awareness about domestic violence, such as the federal government's "Let's Stop it at the Start" campaign, can increase public understanding of gendered violence and the types of support available for those affected.

The federal government's 'Let's Stop it at it the Start' campaign.

Evidence of this can be seen in the substantial increase in calls to police and applications for domestic violence protection orders following the roll-out of awareness campaigns in recent years.

However, efforts to change public attitudes towards domestic violence, especially attitudes ascribing blame to victims, have been less successful. The National Community Attitudes Survey shows persistent victim-blaming attitudes in society when it comes to this issue.

   Read more: Blaming victims for domestic violence: how psychology taught us to be helpless

This is concerning because research shows a clear link between victim-blaming attitudes and the perpetration, as well as tolerance, of domestic violence.

What do current campaigns get wrong?

Part of the reason why current campaigns have been ineffective at changing public attitudes may lie in how they frame the issue of domestic violence.

Campaigns need to go beyond communicating what constitutes domestic violence in intimate relationships and where to get help. They need to explain how and why this type of violence can affect anyone. And they need to illustrate how perpetrators control their victims and manipulate those around them.

By failing to do so, we allow domestic violence to remain an issue solely of concern to victims, making it less worthy of public concern.

A narrow focus on victim experiences and awareness creates a false and dangerous sense of security among the general public. It also perpetuates the assumption that domestic violence only impacts those who make "poor relationship choices". And it implies that a woman's choice in partner or her behaviour in a relationship plays a role in the domestic violence she experiences.

   Read more: Young Australians' views on domestic violence are cause for concern – but also hope

Research clearly shows the behaviour of victims has little bearing on the likelihood of domestic violence in intimate relationships. Domestic violence can happen to anyone, regardless of age, race or socioeconomic status.

Highlighting how perpetrators manipulate their victims can be effective in bringing this to light. Perpetrators tend to be charming, manipulative and extremely skilled at image management. They are rarely openly abusive from the start. By the time their abusive behaviours become obvious, they have frequently isolated their victims and manipulated others into perceiving them as a good partner.

What can we do better?

Awareness campaigns should reinforce why domestic violence is everyone's business, not just a problem for those directly affected.

Men play a crucial role. While men living in Australia are far less likely to be killed by an intimate partner, especially if they have never been abusive to that partner, women have a one in four chance of experiencing emotional, physical and/or sexual violence in at least one of their intimate relationships.

Instead of responding to awareness campaigns with questions about why male victims are overlooked by society, men need to become a voice in this fight.

For those unsure how or why, activists like Jackson Katz offer compelling reasons and strategies. As role models, men's voices are crucial in calling out violence against women.

Some campaigns are starting to hold the general public accountable for violence prevention. Queensland's #dosomething campaign, for example, emphasises that domestic violence is a societal issue that impacts everyone.

Queensland's campaign to encourage bystanders to get involved.

Victoria's "Respect Women: Call it Out" campaign specifically highlights the role of men in preventing domestic violence and offers user-friendly examples of how it can be done. More importantly, it removes some of the concerns that bystanders have when trying to help or speak out against this type of violence.

Victoria's 'Respect Women: Call It Out' campaign.

In order to make domestic violence everyone's business rather than an issue solely for women, awareness campaigns need to follow these examples. More importantly, they need to address how perpetrators manipulate victims, their families and their communities, and how we all play a role in speaking out against such violence.

If we aren't able to do this, women's deaths will continue to be met with silence and Australia will continue to tolerate the alarming prevalence of domestic violence.

Silke Meyer currently receives research funding from the Queensland Department of Child Safety, Youth and Women, Centacare, Uniting Care Queensland and CQUniversity. She has previously received research funding from Queensland Police Services and the Department for Social Services. She is affiliated with the Queensland Domestic and Family Violence Death Review and Advisory Board.
 In order to change public opinion, campaigns need to move beyond awareness raising and start addressing the perpetrators and causes of domestic violence. Silke Meyer, Senior Lecturer in Domestic and Family Violence Practice, CQUniversity Australia Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.