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Current Issues  

     
 
  • NATIONAL COUNCIL TO REDUCE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND CHILDREN

The Federal Government has established a National Council to Reduce Violence Against Women and Children.  The Council will oversee the Government's commitment to establish the National Plan to Reduce Violence Against Women and Children. The Office for Women is holding consultations around the country regarding priority areas for the Council’s work.  Contact the Office for Women for further information.   Written input from a diverse range of stakeholders is also being sought. Responses are welcome from all contributors.

Amnesty International Australia has just released its report, ‘Setting the Standard: international good practice to inform an Australian National Plan of Action to Eliminate Violence Against Women’.  Amnesty suggests that submission writers can use this report as a guide when preparing submissions for the Federal Government’s consultation on a National Action Plan to Prevent Violence Against Women and Children or see the Office for Women website for guided questions.

Responses should be returned to Project Team - National Plan, Office for Women, PO Box 7576 Canberra Mail Centre ACT 2610. Alternatively responses can be emailed to women@fahcsia.gov.au for attention Project Team - National Plan.

DEADLINE EXTENDED!!! - Responses must be received by 5pm Eastern Standard Time on 31 July 2008.

  

The Australian Domestic & Family Violence Clearinghouse is preparing a submission which will be provided on our website in the next few days. For examples of national and state plans to address violence against women see:



  • NATIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR PROTECTING AUSTRALIA's CHILDREN: DISCUSSION PAPER FOR CONSULTATION

The Australian Government invites public comment on the development and implementation of a national framework for protecting Australia's children: 'Australia's children: safe and well - A national framework for protecting Australia's children'.  A discussion paper has been developed with key stakeholders, State and Territory Governments and other experts as well as practitioners in child protection-related fields. Focused comments are invited under six main topics for consideration. Visit the FaHCSIA website for more details and information.

 

News 

 

  • VICHEALTH COMMUNITY BASED INFORMATION AND SURVEY

    VicHealth is seeking information from organisations providing secondary schools with ‘Respectful/ Healthy Relationships’ education.  If your organisation provides secondary schools with Respectful Relationships and/or gender based violence prevention education programs, VicHealth would like your help by completing a brief survey, hosted on the ACSSA website:  http://www.aifs.gov.au/acssa/whatsnew.html#survey

     

  • TASMANIA - NEW CHILD PROTECTION SERVICES

The ABC reports that the Tasmanian Government has released a new plan for child protection services (‘New plan to protect children’, ABC, 13 June 2008, http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/06/13/2274359.htm).  An allocation of over $6 million was provided in the state budget.  This funding will use non-government agencies for intervention in family problems in the first instance, following recommendations of a report by consultants, KPMG.  If issues cannot be resolved, then child protection services will intervene.  Four new regional bodies are being established to deliver child and family support services.

 

  • VICTORIAN POLICE GET NEW POWERS

The Victorian Parliament has introduced new domestic violence laws to better protect victims as part of its integrated response to family violence.  The ABC report that Attorney General, Rob Hulls, says the new bill sends a clear message that domestic violence will no longer be tolerated (ABC, ‘Police get new powers on domestic abuse’ http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/06/24/2284485.htm)

 

  • FUNDING FOR WHITE RIBBON FOUNDATION

The Government will provide $1 million to the White Ribbon Foundation over the next four years to support and expand its activities in rural and regional Australia. The funding will also assist in the promotion of culture-change amongst young people, particularly young men, to reduce violence against women.

http://www.tanyaplibersek.fahcsia.gov.au/internet/tanyaplibersek.nsf/content/white_ribbon_day_25jun08.htm

 

  • NEWSPAPER ARTICLES

AAP 2008, ‘More sex assault counsellors on the way: Iemma’, Sydney Morning Herald, 19 June , http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/more-sex-assault-counsellors-on-the-way-iemma/2008/06/19/1213770810185.html

Gibson J, 2008, ‘Too inept to save children’, The Sydney Morning Herald, June 19, http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/too-inept-to-save-children/2008/06/18/1213770732783.html

2008, ‘Lack of funding hampers child sex plan’, The Sydney Morning Herald, June 19, http://news.smh.com.au/national/lack-of-funding-hampers-child-sex-plan-20080619-2t0x.html

Mickelburough, P 2008, ‘Escalating family violence, economy blamed’, The Australian, 12 May, http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23682780-5006785,00.html

2008, ‘Intervention has been a success: Gordon’, National Indigenous Times, 20 June, http://www.nit.com.au/breakingNews/story.aspx?id=15265

 

  • POSITIONS VACANT

The Indigenous Law Centre at UNSW is currently looking for a Research Associate with experience in Indigenous legal issues/ family law/criminal law or criminology to run and coordinate research in the Understanding Women and Children's experiences of the justice system project.

The Centre is also hiring for an Editor for the Indigenous Law Bulletin.

Further information and Position Descriptions are available at:

http://www.ilc.unsw.edu.au/ <http://www.ilc.unsw.edu.au/>

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Conferences and events

For a complete list of upcoming conferences and events see the Events calendar

If you are holding a conference or event, please let us know: ph: 02 9385 2990, clearinghouse@unsw.edu.au

 

 

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Grants, Scholarships, Awards and funding


GRANTS

 

Tender for provision of services for the Support for Victims of People Trafficking Program

The Australian Government Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs invites suitably qualified and experienced organisations to tender for the provision of case management services for the Support for Victims of People Trafficking Program. The Service Provider will be required to deliver professional individualised case management services for clients on the Program. The time frame for the delivery of the above services will be for 12 months commencing in September 2008, with the possibility for extension. Tender documentation may be obtained from the AusTender website. Tenders close at 2.00pm Canberra time on 25 July 2008.

 

National Youth Week 2009 Grants

National Youth Week will be held from 28 March to 5 April 2009.  The Queensland Department of Communities has $70,000 available to assist young people and community organisations wishing to host National Youth Week events across the state.  To obtain an information package visit http://www.communities.qld.gov.au or telephone the Office for Youth on 3008 8622.  Funding submissions must be lodged by 4 pm on Monday 4 August 2008.

 

Criminology Research Council research grants

Submissions are now being accepted for 2008/09 Criminology Research Council general grants.  Submissions must be received by 22 August 2008.  See: http://www.criminologyresearchcouncil.gov.au/applications/

 

AWARDS

Winners of the inaugural Victorian EVAs (Eliminating Family Violence Media Awards), acknowledging media reporting that contributes to the elimination of family violence, are:

- Gold EVA winner - Heather Gallagher, Northcote Leader, for her series "Home Terror Crisis"

- Best News / Current Affairs Report (Item or Series) - Heather Gallagher, Northcote Leader, "Home Terror Crisis"

- Best Feature in Print (newspaper) - Adam Cresswell, Weekend Australian, "Battle against violence can never end"

- Best Feature in Print (newspaper): Highly Commended - Liz Cincotta, The Age, "Set Free"

- Best Opinion - John Silvester, The Age, "Murder is Murder"

- Best Regional /Rural Report - James Kelly, The Courier, Ballarat, "Men confront their battle against family violence"

- Best Magazine Report - Megan Norris, "I sent my violent partner to jail" in New Woman Magazine

- Best Photograph - Penny Stephens, The Age, "Family Men"

- Best Radio Interview - Kathy Bedford, ABC Victoria's State-wide Drive Program, ‘Interview with Police Assistant Commissioner Leigh Gassner'

- Best Television Current Affairs (less than 20 minutes) - Jointly won by Lisa Whitehead, 7.30 Report, ABC Television, "Domestic Violence and Animal Abuse" AND Tamara Oudyn, Stateline, ABC News and Current Affairs, "Micro Finance"

- Best Television Documentary (more than 20 minutes) - Wendy Page, Ian Harley, Mike Chergwin, Colin Cosier, ABC Television, Australian Story on ‘Estelle Blackburn'

 

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New books, reports and papers

Fitzgerald, J 2008, 'Does circle sentencing reduce Aboriginal offending?', Crime and Justice, Contemporary Issues in Crime and Justice No 115, NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research

Circle sentencing involves the community in offender's sentencing and is an alternative mode of sentencing adult Aboriginal offenders in NSW. This bulletin released in May 2008 analyses whether participants in circle sentencing reduce the frequency of their offending, take longer to reoffend and/or reduce the seriousness of their offending.

http://www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/lawlink/bocsar/ll_bocsar.nsf/vwFiles/CJB115.pdf/$file/CJB115.pdf

 

Kilmartin, C & Allison, J 2007, Men's violence against women: Theory, research, and activism, Lawrence Erlbaum Assoc.

This book highlights clinical and social psychological theory and research, as well as prevention and intervention techniques, with the purpose of understanding and ultimately ending gender-based violence. Several forms of violence, including rape, intimate partner violence, stalking and sexual harassment, are addressed.

Review of the Family Violence Act 2004 (Tas)

http://www.safeathome.tas.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/97636/Review_Report_March_2008.pdf

Raped by a Partner: A research report

A recent project was undertaken to obtain evidence on partner rape, a summary of the research can be found here http://www.aifs.gov.au/acssa/pubs/newsletter/n16.html#partner. The full report from the project will be available after the launch (see above launch on 15 July in conferences and events) http://www.whealth.com.au/ourwork/intimate_partner_rape.html

 

Adams, D 2007, Why do they kill? Men who murder their intimate partners, Vanderbilt University Press

This is the first book to profile different types of wife killers, and to examine the courtship patterns of abusive men. The author shows that wife murders are not, for the most part, “crimes of passion,” but culminations of lifelong predisposing factors of the men who murder, and that many elements of their crimes are foretold by their past behaviour in intimate relationships.

 

Bricknell, S 2008, ‘Trends in violent crime’, Trends and issues in crime and criminal justice, no. 359, Australian Institute of Criminology

This report released in June 2008 examines the trend in rates of homicide, sexual assault and robbery from the early 1990s into the following decade. The results are mixed showing a decrease in the rate of homicide but an increase in reporting of recorded assaults and sexual assaults.

http://www.aic.gov.au/publications/tandi2/tandi359.html

 

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New resources

 

New websites

A website, SADA (Sexual Assault in Disability and Aged Care) has been developed as a resource for residential disability and aged-care services in New South Wales.  http://www.sadaproject.org.au/index.html

The Men's Referral Service (MRS) – a Victorian telephone counselling service that refers male users of violence to men’s behaviour change programs - has developed a new website that is an important means of reaching a large number of men who need to change: http://www.mrs.org.au

No To Violence, the peak body for men’s behaviour change programs in Victoria, has launched their new website.  Please email any queries about the new website to Nick Andrzejewski, No To Violence Community Development Coordinator, at nicka@ntv.net.au, or on 9428 3536.  http://www.ntv.org.au

 

Cooling off spaces and safe houses for remote areas of the Northern Territory

The Northern Territory has established a number of safe houses and cooling off centres in twelve remote communities.  Constructed out of modified shipping containers, the structures will serve as domestic violence shelters for women, as well as training rooms and 'cooling off' spaces for male perpetrators of family violence.  The ABC reports that the project’s coordinator says the project will promote the option of women victims remaining in the family home and having the violent men removed.  It will also have the advantage of being an option for violent men, who now have somewhere to go other than the police station.  However, the chief executive of the Yuendumu community has expressed concern that men will not voluntarily go to the cooling off centres and use of these spaces may require the intervention of police (2008, ABC, ‘Remote NT gets domestic dispute 'cooling off' spaces’,

18 June, http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/06/18/2278069.htm).

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New journal articles

 

JOURNAL OF AUSTRALIAN SOCIAL POLICY 2008, vol 47

‘The continued importance of a feminist analysis: Making gendered inequalities visible through a critique of the Howard government policy on domestic violence’, Morley C & Macfarlane S, pp 31-37

 

TRAUMA, VIOLENCE AND ABUSE 2008, vol 9, no 3

‘Economic Violence To Women and Girls: Is It Receiving the Necessary Attention?’, Fawole OI, pp 167-177

 

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN 2008, vol 14, no 6

‘Mental Health Consequences of Intimate Partner Abuse: A Multidimensional Assessment of Four Different Forms of Abuse’, Mechanic MB, Weaver TL, & Resick PA, pp 634-654


‘Providing Support to IPV Victims in the Emergency Department: Vignette-Based Interviews With IPV Survivors and Emergency Department Nurses’, Watt MH, Bobrow EA, & Moracco KE pp 715-726

 

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN 2008, vol 14, no 7

‘When Will Adolescents Tell Someone About Dating Violence Victimization?’ Black BM, Tolman RM, Callahan M, Saunders DG, & Weisz AN, pp 741-758

 

VIOLENCE AND VICTIMS, 2008, vol 23, no 2

‘State Standards for Domestic Violence Perpetrator Treatment: Current Status, Trends, and Recommendations’, Maiuro RD & Eberle JA, pp133-155

‘Intimate Partner Violence Risk Assessment and Management’, Kropp PR, pp 202-220

‘Child Abuse in the Context of Domestic Violence: Prevalence, Explanations, and Practice Implications’, Jouriles EN, McDonald R, Smith S, Amy M,  Heyman RE & Garrido, E, pp 221-235

 

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Research and Resources

 all the items added during the past month to the new-look Research and Resources database.


Good Practice Programs


For new additions to the Good Practice database, see the most

(If you are considering making a Good Practice submission, please call (02) 9385 3843.)



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