Thursday, 29 May 2014

Why Do Victims Of Domestic Violence Keep This Hidden?

For most domestic abuse victims, it is believed that they will be involved in at least thirty-five more assaults over a period of approximately seven years before they make the break and report the crime. What is even worse is that domestic violence reportedly claims the life of two women in any given week and one in four women will be exposed to domestic abuse in their life.

It is estimated that about 23 percent of domestic violence cases are ever reported. Many victims of domestic violence choose not to report the violence because they fear that the police will not respond. Research found that some police stations would screen their calls for emergencies and that domestic violence was not considered an emergency. This apparently happens on weekends and at night, when most domestic violence incidents occur. Apparently the safety of someone in a violent relationship is not important enough for the police to attend.

Some of the studies show that only one quarter of domestic violence reports conclude with the offender being arrested. It would seem as though law enforcement and the justice system do not have any understanding of how serious domestic violence is. They may not realize that domestic abuse is a serious crime and the offenders should be arrested and brought to justice.

Domestic violence is often unreported because people are not sure just what constitutes domestic violence. It just might be the case that some victims do not realize that being hit or verbally abused is domestic violence. They probably also do not understand that they should be asking for help. There are cases where victims exist that have no idea and need to be educated. Their abusive partner has likely convinced them that what is happening is either their fault or not a crime at all.

Some victims of domestic violence are too scared to report this insidious crime as they are afraid of any consequences reporting the abuse might bring. They might be scared for their own life or it could be that their abuser has threatened to hurt their children or animals or extended family, so they give in and do not file a report. They keep hiding the abuse and hope that it will not happen again. Most victims are aware that what’s happening to them is a crime, as there is so much awareness about domestic violence these days. There are TV advertisements and campaigns that operate all the time trying to get the message out to victims of abuse to report the offender.

Many victims of abuse will suffer in silence because they often believe that what is happening to them is their fault. Owning up to the fact that your partner beats you can be demoralizing to the victim. Many sufferers are ashamed and often very embarrassed. Their failure to report the abuse to law enforcement is often because their self-esteem has been destroyed and they actually believe that they cause their partner to be violent.

There are also misconceptions about what domestic violence is. Some people think that domestic violence and abuse is only about a partner using physical violence, however this is not the case. Abuse can be verbal, emotional, psychological, or sexual. A partner could withhold money and not allow his partner access to any finances. This behavior is abuse.
Yelling at someone and calling them names is abuse and is also classed as violence.

Another reason for sufferers to not report abuse is the rate of prosecutions that are successful. Despite a prosecutors best efforts; not many abusers receive a jail sentence. If the offender is not going be sent to jail for his or her crime, which essentially helps the victim feel safe and vindicated, it is likely that even more cases of domestic violence will be unreported.

The criminal justice system is failing the victims of violence and abuse. It is also clear that the abuser may come after the victim in retaliation against the victim for reporting the crime and their subsequent arrest. It also looks as though the victims are choosing the sensible option for themselves and their families, as self preservation seems to be one of most important reasons why victims do not report the abuse. When reporting the abuse could lead to more violence and drama for the victim, it is likely that the victim will choose the path that is easier to deal with.

If justice is not going to be served when it comes to these acts of violence against the victim, then cases will not get reported and probably even more deaths will occur due to violence in a relationship or marriage. Both men and women can be victims of domestic violence and the criminal processes need to change to make it easier for these people to overcome their fear and report the offender. It is clear that the one of the biggest reasons domestic violence is under reported is because the victims are not getting justice or possibly any protection.

If it is likely that the court will not send an offender to jail, then there needs to be more support out there for domestic violence victims. Guidelines need to be put into place to protect people who are being abused in the home. There needs to be more avenues of help and assistance, such as better guidelines and laws to have court orders in place as a protection measure. These changes do not just apply to the justice system. The medical profession can get involved and look closely for signs of abuse when they treat suspicious injuries and these people could try to intervene if possible. Or hospitals could employ staff with training in dealing with victims of abuse and put programs in place to get these people out of the situation. More shelters could be opened, so there are places for these victims to run to. There is so much more that can be done.


This article is also published at Full of Knowledge

Copyright © 2014 Janelle Coulton

This article may not be republished or reprinted without the express, written permission from the author. A short summary is permitted with a link back to this source.

Tuesday, 27 May 2014

Australian Budget 2014 - Who Is Really Doing The Heavy Lifting?

When Joe Hockey, the Federal Treasurer made his budget speech last week, I very carefully took in every single word. I also paid strong attention to what was not said.

This Government went to an election in September 2013 making many promises to the voters regarding many issues. Tony Abbott promised to get rid of the carbon tax and stop the illegal boats coming into Australia. He has succeeded in stopping the boats and has tried to dismantle the carbon tax, however the Senate stood in his way. He also made many other promises to his voters.

Tony Abbott promised the following:

* No changes to pensions without going to election

* No new taxes without going to an election

* No cuts to health

* No cuts to education

* No cuts to ABC or the SBS

The cuts to education and health remain to be seen as it is not clear at the moment whether cuts have been made. There was money promised to the States and Territories by the Rudd/Gillard government, and it was revealed that these funds were unavailable, however Abbott did commit to funding the Gonski program in public schools. 

The ABC and the SBS were cut, however if the Government had any brains, they would sell both stations to private companies. The cuts to the CSIRO came out of the blue, and I don't know many people who are happy with this. As for the deficit tax, dressed up as a levy. I don't have a problem with this. But, why are Abbott and Hockey not going after companies like Google and Apple and making them pay the correct amount of tax. Last year these two companies paid about one percent of their fifty million profit in tax. Their tax bill amounting to $500,000. This is so wrong on so many levels, because it is one rule for one group of people and a different rule for the rest of us.

Despite the lies, I actually think that this a good budget and it is necessary to save money, however having said that I have a few criticisms. Picking on the pensioners, whether the Government has a mandate at the next election or not is unthinkable. I recently heard that Abbott intends to cut off the Seniors Supplement which assists aged pensioners with the cost of living, i.e power bills, gas bills, car rego and other things and this is to happen in July, this year. If this is true, then where is the mandate for this. The pension is also set to be indexed in line with the CPI which will reduce the amount pensioners receive in the long run. 

Increasing the pension age to 70 in 2035 is probably a good idea, given the size of our aging population and fact that people are living longer, however what about nurses, labourers, brickies, people who do hard physical labour. How are they supposed to retrain at 65 and find employment; something will need to give here. 

The one thing they should be doing is taking away the restrictions on superannuation. If the Government want people to self retire, then allow them to put as much money into their super without penalising them. And while you are at it, do something about the fees that are literally eating up people's retirement. And if this Government or any government raise the age that workers can access their superannuation to 70; this will definitely open the door for an election loss and the workers will start a revolution. Raise the pension age, but dictating to people when they can retire is not on.

The one group of people that they should have left alone are aged pensioners whose only income is the pension. These measures will hit these people harder than most and I do not think this is fair. Every single time someone from the media or the other parties have attacked Abbott and Hockey about what they are doing to aged pensioners, the Liberal spokespeople or Abbott and Hockey themselves very cleverly do not even mention that they are cutting around $60 per fortnight from what an aged pensioner receives. Doing some research into whether certain people with certain amounts of assets should receive a pension or part pension might be a better idea, rather than taking money that aged pensioners with very little in assets have. Perhaps the assets test is too generous, it might be feasible to do some research on this.

As for the lower and middle classes being hit the hardest by this budget and everyone telling them not to bitch and moan; well I think they have a right to be upset. They will be affected by a GP tax, which is not even going back into paying off the debt. Oh no, the government wants to spend the money on a Research Fund, oh and let's not forget the 24 billion dollars these fighter jets will cost. Why on earth are we spending 24 billion dollars on brand new shiny fighter planes when we have budget debt crisis. The Commission of Audit told the Government that we have a spending problem, not a revenue problem. Yet they want these shiny toys for Defence, so their answer is to make cuts to pensions, family payments and literally cut the unemployed off without a cent.

Family payments are being cut, unemployed people are set to be cut off their benefits for six months. Not to mention people on disability pensions will be re-assessed for work. Everyone of these lower class Australians will be hit by a GP fee according to the budget papers. Pensioners and children will be treated for free after ten visits. Families, single people and pensioners who are doing it tough already will be hit the hardest by this.

I am well aware that welfare fraud has to stop, however is this the way to go about it? Is it right to simply deny someone welfare assistance who has just gotten fired and has no savings or entitlements. For Australians under the age of thirty, this is the plan. The Government will cut them off benefits for six months. Somebody close to me falls into this category and I just cannot stomach this happening to someone who certainly does not deserve it.

What happens when they cannot pay the rent, let alone put fuel in their car or catch a bus to attend a job interview. This premise is simply ridiculous. Cutting people off benefits could lead to more homeless on the streets, more crime and higher suicide rates. I am personally already seeing how these measures are affecting the lower and middle classes. People are getting fired, tradesmen are losing work because the general public are already tightening the belt. Trades people and others in business are losing work left, right and centre and this will lead to more job losses. I have personally witnessed one case of someone seeking a referral to mental heath professionals because measures in this budget for them was the last straw on top of the extreme, hard times they are facing. The mental energy used worrying about all of these issues and how these changes will affect this person literally sent them off the deep end. It is my opinion that there is more of this sort of thing to come, and then some.

None of these measures have even come in yet and already people are scared, under pressure and wondering how they will cope financially into the future. There are many people who cannot work due to disability, illness or other medical conditions, such as blindness. Some of these people are terrified the Government will cut them back to Newstart and force them to find work, when there are close to one million people without jobs in this country. Just where do these people find jobs. Hiring independent doctors will cost the tax-payers a fortune and how do we know that they won't get it wrong and cut people off that need that support. Wouldn't it be cheaper to run a campaign to encourage the public to report the fraudsters to Centrelink.

I literally smile to myself when I read the polls and see that the Labor party are kicking ass over the Coalition. Tony Abbott will be out of a job if he insists on pushing this budget through as is and those vandals who put us in this mess will be in charge of this country again. Many people in this country are losing or have lost faith in the major parties and many are considering voting informally or voting for minor parties. Do we really need the Greens Party running this country, I don't think so.

My advice to you Mr Abbott and Mr Hockey is this: go out into the real world before you get the bright idea that people will survive without any kind of welfare assistance. Pensioners can not afford to have $60 odd dollar ripped out of their pensions and until you go and talk to them and see just what they are surviving on. If this is to happen in July, then you better get a move on and negotiate a much fairer budget for the lower class, hit these companies that get out of their tax responsibility and close any loopholes that income earners who are affected by the debt levy will use to get out of paying it. 

Tony Abbott and his mates are getting criticised and called liars and it's my opinion that they deserve it right about now. They are no better than Gillard; She said "There will be no carbon tax under a government I lead." And then did a complete about face.

Something tells me that Shorten and the Labor party and his Greenie mates would love nothing more that to force this budget to an election, especially when the polls say what they do right now. Right now Abbott and Hockey have a lot to do. Stop wasting tax payers money flying all over the country trying to sell this budget the way it is; because it is a waste of time. Negotiate with the enemy.

Some of the above facts could be based on rumours, however I do believe that most of the facts in this blog are correct at the time of writing.

Copyright © 2014 Janelle Coulton

Read more articles and blogs by Janelle Coulton

Thursday, 22 May 2014

Are Pensioners Becoming Scared And Desperate?

On Wednesday the 21 May 2014, a pensioner named Gloria phoned ABC Radio to talk to Tony Abbott who was a guest on the program. She told the Prime Minister that in order to afford to pay her bills and feed herself she has to work for a sex phone line service. She claimed that with the changes to pensions in 2017 that she would be $850 a year, worse off. 

ABC radio reported that Gloria was 67 years old, which would make her an aged pensioner. There seems to have been some dispute about this as Marcus Paul on 2CC in Canberra said this woman was only 63, which would mean she would not qualify for the aged pension.

In any case, Prime Minister Tony Abbott explained to her that she would be better off after the carbon tax is dismantled and that she would retain the compensation payments that were given to low income earners when the carbon tax came in under the Gillard Government. What was not mentioned is the fact that all aged pensioners will lose their Seniors Supplement, which take away about $60 per fortnight. In-fact Mr Abbott conveniently avoided this fact. When you add up the extra she will spend on co-payments to bulk-billing doctors and prescriptions and then factor in this Seniors Supplement, Gloria will be far worse off than she herself has calculated.

Having said all of this; this legislation will not come into effect until the next election has passed, which gives all pensioners a chance in the meantime to work if they can and invest any money they can before this happens. The thing is, there is time to plan and somehow make up for the shortfall. In any case, it is likely that these changes will not go through, given that all but one Senator who will rotate into the Senate in July does agree with cuts to welfare. He does not specify whether he is in favour of changing pensions, but all the other Senators have stated they are against cuts to welfare.

Pensioners are struggling as it is, so how can they afford to lose $60 per fortnight and then be forced to pay co-payments for medical services and extra to pay for their prescriptions. And it must really bug people that Tony Abbott made no mention of the scrapping of the Senior's Supplement. It is doubtful that the aged pensioners forgot about that.

It is pretty clear that not everything Hockey and Abbott have put into the budget will get through the Senate. What is even more clear is that it seems as though Bill Shorten's Labor Party and the Greens would love to see this budget go to a double dissolution election. It really does seem as though Shorten and his buddies are running an election campaign with the sole purpose of scaring the hell out of pensioners, the unemployed and families and branding Abbott and Hockey as liars. Perhaps they are liars, but so is the opposition and every other politician and Australians will get sick of this song soon enough.

This strategy will not buy Labor or the Greens any credibility and certainly will not win them an election, should it go that far. They need to put a plan on the table and come up with alternative idea where the budget can be balanced. They made the financial mess in the first place. Australians are not stupid; they know who is responsible for the mess we are in. As for the people who are running scared, well they should be. This budget is the toughest we have seen since Howard won the election in 1996. Hockey and Abbott are going to have to rethink this plan or do a much better job of selling it. Winking and smirking at a radio announcers and getting captured on film doing so is not helping. People are starting to think that Abbott is arrogant and cannot see the forest for the trees, not to mention the name calling. It will not take long for the public to become angry about this childish behaviour. We all need to grow up and focus on the policies and the issues, instead of slinging mud backwards and forwards.

What do you think of this budget and the behavior of our politicians? I would love to know. Catch up with me on Facebook or Twitter.

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Copyright © 2014 Janelle Coulton