Paid family and domestic violence leave a priority for the new government

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has identified paid family and domestic violence leave as one of the new government’s first legislative reform priorities. In media interviews over the weekend, the Prime Minister revealed that climate change targets, ten days domestic and family violence leave and the creation of Jobs and Skills Australia will be the government’s first three pieces of business when the new parliament sits in July.

This echoes reports that Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke has said that legislating the paid leave as a universal right would be his first parliamentary act.  Mandating paid domestic violence leave under the national employment standards will cover about 8.5 million Australians, considerably enhancing access beyond the Fair Work Commission’s decision granting the right to 2.7 million workers on industry awards.

Minister Burke also said that he wouldn’t delay implementing all recommendations from the [email protected] report, including creating a positive duty to prevent workplace sexual harassment.

Around the Country

• Mutthi Mutthi and Wamba Wamba woman Jana Stewart made history at the federal election, becoming Labor's first Indigenous female senator for Victoria. She has said, "We've got work to do on finalising a national plan to end violence against women and children…That's absolutely one of the things I want to make sure happens”.

• Julia Gillard has announced the publication of her new book Not Now, Not Ever, which will be released in October on the 10th anniversary of her famous ‘misogyny speech’.

• Broome is set to receive Western Australia's fourth One Stop Hub (Hub) for family and domestic violence (FDV). The new Hub will provide victims of family and domestic violence with a range of supports and wraparound service assistance in a single location.

• The National Indigenous Times writes Burney and Albanese must take reins to repair damage on Indigenous human rights.

• The Gold Coast's new most senior police officer has vowed to ensure "no-one slips through the cracks" as police work to address domestic violence.

• The Northern Territory has established a Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Interagency Coordination and Reform Office (DFSV-ICRO) to facilitate and oversee the distribution of the grants to fight domestic and sexual violence across the Territory.

• The New South Wales government announced a $69.6m Safer Pathway program expansion including: $37.6 million over four years to deliver more case management services; $2.3 million over two years to enhance the central database used by NSW Police and other agencies to refer victim-survivors to services; and $3.7 million over four years to develop an online client management system for Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Services. $18 million has been allocated for the expansion of Audio-Visual Link (AVL) facilities to allow victim-survivors to give evidence remotely. 

• The Northern Community Legal Centre has launched a Peer Education Program for Mitchell Shire women in Victoria, helping to address high rates of family violence in the community.

• The Queensland Government has committed $200,000 to significantly expand the Pets in Crisis program – a partnership between the RSPCA and DVConnect - which recognises that pets are often used as part of coercive and controlling behaviour.

Around the World

• Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Director of UN Women, Sima Bahous, spoke at the UN Security Council Open Debate on Women, Peace and Security on “Let’s put an end to ‘Where are the women’?”.

• A group of UN human rights experts have urged Member States to renew their commitment to end all forms of abuse and violence against older women, promote their human rights and act against pervasive sexist and ageist attitudes.

• UNICEF has called on African Union member states to accelerate efforts and to increase domestic resources to end child marriage and female genital mutilation.

• The Council of Europe finds that Romania has improved protection of women from domestic violence, but progress needed on definition of rape.

• In the US, a White House Task Force to Address Online Harassment and Abuse has been established specifically focused on technology-facilitated gender-based violence.

• Restrictions to limit the spread of COVID-19 inadvertently sparked a rise in violence against women and girls in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.

• In China, video of an assault on a woman in Tangshan has gone viral, raising uncomfortable questions about gender-based violence.

• The Mayor of London has announced a new public health approach to addressing violence against women. With a focus on prevention, the scheme will include an investment of £17.7 million to fund and improve specialist support services, tackle the behaviour of perpetrators and educate the public on how they can address the issue. 

• The global human development organization, FHI 360, is launching new initiatives in Ukraine to address the growing risks of human trafficking and gender-based violence and to provide case management support for survivors.

• Morocco and Belgium have signed a special agreement to “support security services in the fight against violence against women”, and it is aimed at formalizing the two countries’ joint commitment to combating all forms of violence against women and striving for better care of abuse victims.

• A UN Women press release by Larysa Denysenko, Ukrainian legal expert, highlights that “Sexual violence is a tactic of intimidation, torture and humiliation”.

• Women’s Aid in Ireland report that a total of 33,831 disclosures of domestic violence, including coercive control, were made last year.

• The Global Network of Women’s Shelters (GNWS) has launched Lila.help, a directory about direct services for women and girls fleeing from violence, listing accurate, vetted, and safe helplines and shelters for every country and territory in the world. GNWS wants every organisation that provides trustworthy direct services to people experiencing gender-based violence included in their directory. Organisations can fill in their information via this link.

Research and Publications

• The Women’s Legal Service Victoria has launched its Gender and Intersectional Inequality report, drawing on a survey of over 300 legal and justice professionals, examining how other social inequities intersect with gender.

• The Council of Europe’s Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence has published an annual report focusing on child custody, visitation and domestic violence, finding that many countries lack enough protection for children and domestic violence victims.

• Atawhai is a three-year research project conducted in the Bay of Plenty, Aotearoa (New Zealand), that seeks to make it easier for primary care professionals to respond to whānau experiencing or using violence.

• A report by the United Nations found that lesbian, gay, and bisexual persons, trans and other gender diverse persons, and intersex persons face discriminatory and often violent barriers impeding their full and equal enjoyment of the right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health.

• A new study by Uni of South Australia and Uniting Communities found that ‘All these people with lived experience are not being heard’: What family violence survivors want policy makers to know.

• First-time offenders who participated in a domestic violence awareness workshop committed fewer crimes over the next year, according to a report from the University of Birmingham in the UK.

• In a study published in The Lancet Planetary Health and led by a researcher at the University of Cambridge, findings painted a bleak picture for the future due to extreme events that are driving economic instability, food insecurity and mental stress, disrupting infrastructure, and exacerbating gender inequality.

• The UNHCR has issued a situation report on Gender Based Violence (GBV) as an alarming concern in Cabo Delgado, Mozambique. Women and girls are at risk of multiple forms of GBV before, during and after displacement.

• The single-year health burden associated with physical intimate partner violence (IPV) in the South American country of Colombia was $90.6 million, finds a new study from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.

• Reynolds, S.A. Do health sector measures of violence against women at different levels of severity correlate? Evidence from Brazil. BMC Women's Health 22, 226 (2022).

• Tsegaw, M., Mulat, B. & Shitu, K. Intimate partner violence and associated factors among reproductive age women in Liberia: a cross-sectional study using a recent Liberian demographic and health survey. BMC Women's Health 22, 238 (2022).

• Wathen, C.N., Burd, C., MacGregor, J.C.D. et al. “We’re so limited with what we actually can do if we follow all the rules”: a qualitative study of the impact of COVID-19 public health protocols on violence against women services. BMC Public Health 22, 1175 (2022).

• Zegeye, B., Olorunsaiye, C.Z., Ahinkorah, B.O. et al. Understanding the factors associated with married women’s attitudes towards wife-beating in sub-Saharan Africa. BMC Women's Health 22, 242 (2022). 

• The Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation has announced that Dr Diarmaid Harkin, Dr Mary Iliadis and Matthew Clarke from SHSS/ADI and Karen Bentley from WESNET have secured $420,863 from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade for the project titled "Understanding Technology-Facilitated Domestic Violence in the Pacific and Building Support Services for Victim-Survivors".

• AWAVA, WESNET, NATSIWA and WWDA have launched the ‘Report on Young Women and Non-Binary People’s Experiences of Gender-Based Violence across Australia‘. The report is available now on AWAVA’s website here.
  

Resources and Guidelines

• As part of the Women with Disabilities Australia (WWDA) LEAD project, WWDA has developed a fact sheet to support women, girls, feminine identifying, and non-binary people with disability in understanding, applying for and navigating the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
• CARE has released guidelines relating to Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies.
• Our Watch and Senior Rights Victoria have produced a new resource for practitioners seeking to build their knowledge and practice on preventing violence against older women.
  

• The Victorian Women’s Trust has launched Here She Is! is a directory of woman and gender-diverse professionals for use by media, recruiters, event and conference organisers.

• Elder abuse awareness bookmarks and posters have been translated into 15 languages by the Australian Human Rights Commission to increase community awareness of the National Elder Abuse phone line. Additional languages will be rolled out this year.

• Violence against women increases at times of disaster. Gender and Disaster Australia have compiled some useful resources to ensure first responders consider violence against women as they set up and staff evacuation centres and work in communities impacted by disaster. Find the interactive webpage here.

Media

• The Conversation writes A clinical psychiatrist reveals how Indian women in Australia experience family violence – and how to combat it.
  

• Mary Crooks, executive director of the Victorian Women’s Trust, writes What this new political era means for women.

• Jess Hill in Primer discusses 'We Need To Stop Seeing Girls As Someone Else’s Wealth’.

• The Guardian reports ‘This is another pandemic’: a female survivor of domestic abuse in China speaks out.

• The World Economic Forum (WEF) discusses Violence against women is a shadow pandemic - we must take action to stop it.

• The WEF has also issued an Explainer: How gender inequality and climate change are interconnected.

• Lucy Turnbull writes for Women’s Agenda Telling, and changing, the story of violence against women.

• In writing about women’s superannuation, The Guardian highlights how issues of coercive control come into play in women’s superannuation disadvantage in multiple ways. 

• The Conversation reports on University of Arizona research showing that Alcohol is becoming more common in sexual assault among college students.

• The Conversation writes ‘All these people with lived experience are not being heard’: what family violence survivors want policy makers to know.

• The Post Magazine reflects Domestic abuse in ancient China was common and a woman’s punishment for divorcing her husband was harsh, but one woman said ‘enough’.

• The Havana Times reports Domestic Violence: the Hidden Face of Chile’s Housing Crisis.

• Vox discusses The long-awaited and much-dreaded backlash to the Me Too movement is here.

• The webinar launching the AWAVA, WESNET, NATSIWA and WWDA Report on Young Women and Non-Binary People’s Experiences of Gender-Based Violence across Australia can be watched here.

• AWAVA’s own Karen Bentley, CEO of Women’s Services Network (WESNET), features in episode 3 of There’s No Place Like Home - FF new podcast that puts survivors of family violence at the centre of the story. Learn more by heading to the podcast website.

Calls for Submissions, Surveys, and EOIs

• Now is the time to share your experience of violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation with the Disability Royal Commission. Registrations for private sessions close 30 June 2022. Submissions close on 31 December 2022. Find more information on the DRC website.
• The Australian Capital Territory government has released a consultation draft law to protect the rights of intersex people. If passed, the bill would ban deferrable medical interventions on children with intersex traits until they’re old enough to decide treatments for themselves. Feedback is invited via a questionnaire or email by 9 July 2022.
• Do you work with or for young people? Have you used The Line educator and practitioner resources? If so, Our Watch would love to hear your feedback. The survey takes 15 minutes to complete and closes on 15 July 2022.
• Have you or a client have experienced tech-facilitated abuse or coercive control? Has a partner abused you using text messages or Facebook? Have they tracked you using GPS tracking apps? If you or a client of yours have experienced this type of abuse and sought safety and justice support, researchers from Monash, RMIT and WESNET would like to speak to you. For more information, please contact [email protected]

• The Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre is seeking survey participants for two areas of study: 1) Did you seek family violence support during the COVID19 lockdowns? If so, we want to hear about your experiences of accessing support remotely. Please complete our short anonymous online survey. 2) Do you work in the domestic and family violence perpetrator intervention space in Australia? We are seeking practitioners for a study on responding to intimate partner sexual violence in domestic and family violence perpetrator interventions. Complete the survey here.

• If you work in family violence or other related services, such as legal and family services in Victoria, the Australian Institute of Family Studies invites you to share your experiences of how your client service needs changed and how your services adapted to meet their needs during COVID-19. Take the survey: Future-proofing Safety Project Information Sheet (aifs.gov.au).
• The Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre Centre has launched a study on LGBTIQ+ family violence victim-survivors' experiences with Victoria's intervention order system. The focus of this study is on access to justice and safety outcomes. To complete the survey, click this link. Please feel free to share the survey widely.

• The International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health is inviting manuscripts for a special issue ‘Engaging Men and Boys in the Prevention of Violence Against Women and Girls’. Deadline for submission is 31 July 2022.

Events

• A recording of the online launch of Our Watch and Women with Disabilities Victoria’s Changing the landscape: A national resource to prevent violence against women and girls with disabilities is available on the Our Watch website.
• The Third Sector’s 5th Annual National Indigenous Social and Emotional Wellbeing Forum is being held virtually and in person in Darwin on 21-24 June 2022, and will provide attendees with practical tools and strategies to tackle the high rate of Indigenous suicide and learn how to appropriately integrate culture into practice.
• Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre seminar series is presenting Forced Marriage as a Form of Family Violence in Victoria by Dr Shih Joo Tan (Siru) on 13 July 9.00 -10.00 am.

• No to Violence Conference 2022: Shifting the Burden is on at the Adelaide Convention Centre from 1 to 4 August 2022.

• The AHURI National Homelessness Conference 2022 is being held in Canberra on 8 August 2022.

Training and Further Education

• WESNET is offering Technology Safety Online Training for SADFV professionals, for dates and training descriptions please visit https://techsafety.org.au/training

• ACON has recently launched three online training modules: The Trans Vitality: Trans Affirming Practice eLearning; Trans and Gender Diverse Sexual Health ELearning, in collaboration with ASHM; and Recognise and Respond, in collaboration with the Black Dog Institute.

• The RACGP Family Violence GP Education Program assists GPs in developing skills and knowledge to respond to domestic and family violence. The program is open to all Victorian GPs and practice staff and offers two training pathway options – beginner and intermediate/advanced.
  
• The Council of Europe has launched a new, free online course on Violence Against Women for Law Enforcement Professionals.
  

• RMIT’s Graduate Certificate in Domestic and Family Violence provides an exciting opportunity for current and future family violence practitioners, with subjects in gendered violence, responding to family violence, primary prevention of violence against women and specialist case coordination and management. The program is offered online and part-time to support work/life/study balance. Applications can be made online here, or for more information, visit the Program Overview.

• Harmony Alliance has developed a free online course on 'Financial Literacy for Women' available in English, Arabic, Dari, Simplified Chinese, Vietnamese, Nepalese, Punjabi, Hazaragi, Thai, Karen, and Korean.

• The eSafety Commission has added more dates for two modules for teachers: ‘Digital rights and responsibilities of students and educators’ and ‘Online harmful sexual behaviours, misinformation and emerging technologies’.

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*Articles published do not necessarily reflect the views of AWAVA or WESNET and are included as items of interest only.

If you would like to submit a particularly topical piece of news, research, report, etc. please e-mail to [email protected]. We cannot guarantee this will be included.