Page 3353 - Week 11 - Tuesday, 12 October 1993
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I would like to conclude, Madam Speaker, by emphasising that the incidence of domestic violence in our community does not appear to be falling as a result of the work done in this research paper on domestic violence. It is worth noting that the Domestic Violence Crisis Service recorded 458 calls on its telephone service during September of this year, 300 of these being new contacts. As well, crisis intervention workers attended 84 incidents in the same timeframe. Over the past 12 months, more than 1,100 crisis intervention cases have been dealt with and, in addition, court attendances are required and follow-up work on intervention cases has to be completed. Calls to the crisis line over the last 12 months totalled 6,185. That is approximately one call for every 48 Canberrans. These are indeed frightening statistics and represent a trend that must be reversed. We cannot afford to have such a large number of predominantly Canberra women and children living with domestic violence or in fear of domestic violence. In fact, the statistics are even more frightening when you consider Mrs Carnell's earlier comments about the level of underreporting which must still be the case in the ACT.
MRS GRASSBY (9.12): The Community Law Reform Committee's research paper is the most comprehensive research ever done on domestic violence in the ACT. Speakers so far have said what a wonderful report it is. It is a wonderful report. We all know how terrible any domestic violence is - whether it be against a woman, against a man, or against a child. This report is one of the many achievements of the ACT in this field.
In the early 1980s the Australian Law Reform Commission released a report on domestic violence, which report led to the enactment of the domestic violence legislation in the ACT in 1986. This legislation was a tremendous breakthrough in offering better protection to the survivors of domestic violence. As a result of this legislation, victims of domestic violence, who are mainly women and children, could be protected from their violent partners quickly and efficiently. However, there are men who suffer domestic violence.
The Australian Law Reform Commission report also recommended the establishment of a Domestic Violence Crisis Service. In the past five years this service has assisted literally thousands of women who have been subject to violence. This service continues to be supported and funded at significant levels by the current ACT Government. The Domestic Violence Act originally applied only to married and de facto couples. Following a review of the Act in the early 1980s, it was clear that violence was not limited to these relationships. As a result, in 1990 the Act was extended to other relationships to include people who live in the same house and extended family members.
Another important reform to our Domestic Violence Act came with the Weapons Act in 1991. This Act provides that a person who has a domestic violence order against them cannot get a weapons licence. Given that research has shown that over a third of all homicides occur between family members and that a quarter of all homicides are caused by firearms, these provisions are crucial. Another significant reform to domestic violence laws occurred in 1992, when this Assembly passed legislation to allow domestic violence orders from other parts of Australia to be recognised in the ACT. This was one of the most important Acts passed in this house. Many women who have experienced domestic violence continue to live in fear for their lives and move to other parts of the country to escape the violent person. It is therefore crucial that their domestic violence orders apply in the ACT.
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