Angry cycle that needs to end
Too often people’s reaction to domestic violence is to ask: “Why doesn’t she leave?”
But Dame Quentin Bryce says an ambitious report she’s overseen for the Queensland Government responds with: “Why should she have to leave her home and not the perpetrator?”
The report – Not Now, Not Ever: Putting an End to Domestic and Family Violence in Queensland – was handed to Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Saturday.
• Abbott steps up anti-violence action
• Why the world’s best boxer isn’t welcome here
It lists 140 recommendations, including trialling GPS monitoring of high-risk perpetrators and introducing a special domestic violence court, to help put an end to the social problem.
But Dame Quentin, who chaired the Special Taskforce on Domestic and Family Violence that completed the report, says central to the 359-page document is a focus on supporting victims and holding offenders to account for their actions.
She says society and victims themselves often, incorrectly, feel the onus is on victims to stop the violence.
“We recommend … conditions that require a perpetrator to leave the home to keep the victim safe,” Dame Quentin said.
“We recommend wider use of perpetrator intervention programs, stronger penalties for offences that relate to a domestic and family violence incident.
“Perpetrators must be held to account.”
Dame Quentin said the report is made up of the stories of victims who have experienced domestic violence, giving rise to calls for a new criminal offence – non-lethal strangulation.
“Strangulation is often a precursor to domestic homicide and a clear indication of escalation of violence,” she said.
Ms Palaszczuk said the government would consider the reports recommendations “over the coming months”, but welcomed recommendations that called for tougher penalties, a special domestic violence court and the consideration of offenders’ track records when sentencing them for domestic violence offences.
“This is an issue that knows no bounds,” she said.
“It happens in all parts of Queensland, but we need to address it as a community.
“We need to stand up and say no to domestic violence.”
– AAP