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Violence Against Women Bulletin - November 1997
Information Bulletin - November 1997: Volume 1, Issue 4
Click here to download the PDF version of the November 1997 Bulletin>>
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NSW Council on Violence Against Women
The Council is an advisory body which meets four times a year to provide advice to the Attorney General and the Minister for Women.
Council welcomes a new member
Ms Bev Lawson, Deputy Commissioner, Field Operations is the new representative of the NSW Police Service, following restructuring within that agency.
Update on Council Business
Highlights from the Council meeting on 6 November 1997 included:
- formal adoption of the Council Action Plan 1997/98;
- concern about the National Domestic Violence Summit resulting in an urgent communique from the Council to the NSW Attorney General. These concerns were broadcast by the media as a response to the Summit proposals;
- lengthy discussion of perpetrator programs for violent men in the context of domestic violence. The Council will recommend to the Attorney General and the Minister for Women that a draft position paper be developed and widely distributed for discussion and comment.
Copies of the minutes of Council meetings are available on request from the Violence Against Women Specialist Unit. The NSW Council on Violence Against Women will next meet on 5 March 1998.
State-wide Campaigns Sub-committee
The State-wide Campaigns Sub-committee held its first meeting on 5 November 1997.
The sub-committee will advise on:
- themes for State-wide campaigns;
- targeting, mechanisms for delivery and execution of State-wide campaigns;
- other public education activities to support identified State-wide campaigns; and
- mechanisms for the evaluation of State-wide campaigns and education activities which support the campaigns.
A dynamic committee responding to campaign needs
While this core group will act in a standing committee capacity there is scope to make short-term appointments to maximise the expertise for any particular campaign.
Keeping the sub-committee informed
The State-wide Campaigns Sub-committee is particularly interested to hear of community education activities that have been run at a regional or local level. If you have been involved in a project of this type please contact Tahn O’Brien at the Violence Against Women Specialist Unit ph: (02) 9228 8439.
The next meeting of the sub-committee will be on 9 December 1997.
Regional Violence Prevention Specialists (RVPS)
A State-wide approach
Recruitment of the Regional Violence Prevention Specialists is complete. The final three positions which had been readvertised (Southern NSW, Mid Western and Greater Murray) were filled in September 1997. A full list of RVPSs and their contact numbers is included in this bulletin.
Regional Specialist | Area Health Region | Location | Phone |
| Punita Boardman | Northern Sydney | Dee Why | (02) 9971 3215 |
| Judy Duggan | Far West | Bourke | (02) 6872 1795 |
| Robyn Edwards | South Eastern Sydney | Zetland | (02) 9382 8156 |
| Di Furniss | Northern Rivers | Lismore | (02) 6620 2401 |
| Lilian Gomez | South Western Sydney | Liverpool | (02) 9821 8527 |
| Cathy Hastings | New England | Tamworth | (02) 6768 2813 |
| Denise Henry | Illawarra | Wollongong East | (02) 4226 8143 |
| Anoop Johar | Wentworth | Penrith | (02) 4732 1322 |
| Helen Kay | Mid Western | Orange | (02) 6361 6925 |
| Karen MacLean | Greater Murray | Albury | (02) 6058 1850 |
| Jillian Meyers-Brittain | Hunter | Newcastle | (02) 4929 0921 |
| Matina Mottee | Central Sydney | Burwood | (02) 9715 0448 |
| Liz Mulder | Macquarie | Dubbo | (02) 6881 2316 |
| Chris Smith | Central Coast | Gosford | (02) 4320 2575 |
| Rugmini Venkatraman | Western Sydney | Parramatta | (02) 9633 0635 |
| Mary Willis | Mid North Coast | Taree | (02) 6551 1507 |
| Tashe Wise | Southern | Queanbeyan | (02) 6298 9966 |
Regional work in progress
RVPS met again on 15-17 October 1997 for training and planning purposes. Most are in the process of mapping regional services, identifying regional issues and priorities and convening Regional Reference Groups. Regional Reference Groups, comprising key regional stakeholders, will provide advice and support for the development and implementation of Regional Action Plans.
National Domestic Violence Summit
The National Domestic Violence Summit, originally scheduled for 10 October 1997 was deferred to 7 November 1997 due to the South Australian elections being called. The Summit was one item of the meeting of Council of Australian Government (COAG). It consisted of the Prime Minister announcing a three year initiative titled Partnerships Against Domestic Violence which includes:
- a Statement of Principles agreed to by Heads of Government.
- a number of themes and a National Taskforce;
- a three year funding package comprising direct funding to the States and Territories for projects, expected to be $200 000-$250 000 per year;
- the potential for a number of Commonwealth/State projects; and
- descriptions of the State and Territory projects for 1997/98 including a NSW project.
For more information about Partnerships Against Domestic Violence contact the Office for the Status of Women on (02) 6271 5756. Claire Vernon, Executive Officer of the Violence Against Women Specialist Unit is the NSW Government representative on the National Taskforce.
What will Partnerships mean for NSW?
The NSW Council on Violence Against Women is meeting with approximately 20 representatives from key non-Government stakeholder groups or organisations on 2 December 1997 to discuss the new initiatives and how NSW can most benefit.
Women’s Safety Promotion at Parliament House
On 15 October 1997, the Premier hosted a launch of latest research and initiatives to reduce violence against women. This included:
- The NSW Strategy to Reduce Violence Against Women: 17 Regional Violence Prevention Specialists;
- A poster and raising awareness of the extent of violence against women; and
- The Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) on report An Evaluation of the NSW Apprehended Violence Order Scheme.
Seven Ministers demonstrated their support by attending the launch. Premier Carr outlined the Government’s aims: “As you can see by the presence of key Ministers here today, the Government is working across portfolios to tackle violence from every angle. Our goal is to make NSW a safer place for women by cracking down on perpetrators; providing support for victims; and working towards a long term plan to create a safer community”.
The poster uses information from the Women’s Safety Survey, published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 1996. This study found that 2.6 million women had experienced one or more incidents of violence since the age of 15 years.
The intent of the poster design was to convey the message that too many women live with the fear of violence, whether they have experienced violence themselves or not. This fear affects the way that many women plan their days and live their lives, restricting their ability to participate fully in society. A scene was chosen that was not obviously city or regional and that had an ordinary, ‘familiar’ appeal.
A radio community service announcement was also produced to highlight the nature and extent of violence against women means that every woman lives with the fear of violence and experiences unease about the possibility of violence.
Posters are being distributed widely and one is included with this issue of the Bulletin. Further copies are available from the Violence Against Women Specialist Unit.
A New Publication
The Unit has produced a pamphlet on the NSW Strategy to Reduce Violence Against Women which is being widely distributed to service providers and other interested people. Copies are available from the Unit.
Are AVOs proving effective?
A study conducted by the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research has found Apprehended Violence Orders (AVOs) are effective in stopping violence against women.
In the first study of its kind in Australia, the Bureau tracked a group of people who obtained AVOs. Interviews were conducted with them immediately after the order was granted. Follow-up interviews were then conducted one month, three months and six months after the order was granted.
Respondents’ experiences of violence, intimidation and harassment prior to obtaining the AVO were compared with their experiences of these problems one month, three months and six months after obtaining it.
The results of the study showed that, for the vast majority of respondents, there was a significant reduction in stalking, physical assaults, threats of physical assault, verbal abuse, nuisance phone calls and other forms of intimidation and harassment.
These benefits were still present six months after the AVO was granted and existed even amongst those who remained in contact with the person against who the order was taken out.
For a very small group of respondents, problems of violence, intimidation or harassment increased after an AVO was obtained. But only one form of negative behaviour increased for the majority or respondents - a large proportion of defendants approached the family and/or friends of those who obtained an AVO.
Most (77%) respondents were satisfied with the services they received from either the chamber magistrate or the police when they applied for an AVO. Amongst those who were dissatisfied, the complaints included that the court or police officer who dealt with them had been unsympathetic, rude or indifferent, provided insufficient information or explanation or did not take the complaint seriously.
Breaches of AVOs were reported by approximately 31 per cent of the respondents interviewed by the Bureau. Thirty-six per cent of these breaches were reported to police. Surprisingly, however, police were reported as having taken no action in response to approximately 73 per cent of these alleged breaches.
The Director of the Bureau, Dr Don Weatherburn said that, in view of the demonstrable effectiveness of AVOs in stopping violence, police need to become more vigilant in investigating and prosecuting those who breach AVOs.
For copies of the report An Evaluation of the NSW Apprehended Violence Order Scheme contact the Bureau of Crime Statistics on (02) 9231 9190.
Reclaim the Night
Reclaim the Night events were held on or around 31 October in various locations across the State. Reverend Dorothy McRae-McMahon, Chair of the NSW Council on Violence Against Women was one of the speakers at the Reclaim the Night Rally at Martin Place, Sydney. Congratulations to the organisers for such a successful series of events.
The Violence Against Woman Specialist Unit and regional violence prevention specialists are central elements in the NSW Strategy To Reduce Violence Against Women which is a whole of government strategy funded by: The NSW Attorney General’s Department, NSW Department of Community Services, NSW Health, NSW Police and in partnership with the Department for Women.
This bulletin is for anyone interested in the prevention of violence against women and is intended to inform people about the NSW Strategy To Reduce Violence Against Women and its implementation. For more information about the Bulletin contact the Violence Against Women Specialist Unit.
ISSN 1328-437
Click here to download the PDF version of the November 1997 Bulletin>>
 | To view a PDF document, you will need a copy of Adobe Acrobat on your computer. If you do not have a copy of Adobe Acrobat, you can download a copy for free from the Adobe site. |
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