Australia offers money to help victims leave violent partners

Brisbane, Australia (CNN) – The Australian government is offering one-time payments to help people get out of violent relationships.

Starting Tuesday, victims can request a payment of 5,000 Australian dollars (US $ 3,700), which includes cash and direct payments for expenses such as school tuition.

The plan is open to all genders. However, more women are expected to apply for it in a country where a woman is murdered by her partner every nine days, according to government data.

While the payment has been well received by advocates, some say it fails to address the root causes of family violence in Australia.

Mary Crooks, executive director of the Victorian Women’s Trust, says the country needs a broader debate on the “blokey” culture that places men at the head of the family and in most positions in government and business power.

He also said that one must ask why it is women who are forced to leave the family home.

“There is a great moral, ethical and political problem here. Why does she have to continue going through this extraordinary trauma and disruption of her life when, in fact, it was not she who did the damage?” Crooks said. “Why does she have to be the one to quickly pick up the kids and pets, and she can’t possibly get a place in a shelter?”

Gender inequality

Australia scores poorly in international rankings for gender equality, which can contribute to unequal power dynamics in relationships and make women economically vulnerable.

The Report on Global Gender Gap 2021 The World Economic Forum ranks Australia in 50th place, well below the United States, the United Kingdom, France and New Zealand.

At 13.4%, the pay gap between men and women in Australia is at an all-time low, the government reported in its Women’s Budget Statement in May, while pledging to continue reducing it.

However, figures show that the pandemic worsened the economic disparity in Australia, as more women lost their jobs or had their hours cut during local lockdowns than men.

AND as in many countries, the pandemic also led to an increase in family violence in Australia.

According to the government, two-thirds of women who suffered physical or sexual violence by a current or former partner during the pandemic said the assaults had started or increased during the crisis.

Lockdowns prevented many women from leaving abusive relationships, and now, even as COVID-19 restrictions are eased, a housing boom that has driven up rental costs has made it even more difficult.

The authorities try to fill the void.

On Tuesday, New South Wales, the country’s most populous state, announced its biggest investment in tackling domestic and family violence.

The AU 484 million (US $ 360 million) package includes 75 new women’s shelters, equipped with audiovisual rooms for court appearances, community kitchens and playgrounds.

Annabelle Daniel, President of Domestic Violence NSW, welcomed the move, which she says will help address the urgent need for additional safe havens in rural and regional areas.

“We know that the number of people in need who are turned away is continually increasing due to lack of space. When we raise awareness about domestic and family violence, women raise their hands to ask for help,” she said in a statement.

A fraction of the costs

In recent years, the Australian government has tried to tackle family violence with a number of national plans, but rates remain persistently high and outdated attitudes have been hard to shake.

For example, a 2018 survey by Australia’s national research organization found that one in five Australians believes that examples of domestic violence are “normal reactions to everyday stress and frustration.”

Indigenous leaders say the plans have been so ineffective for their community that they want a separate national plan.

According to research conducted by Our Watch, indigenous and Torres Strait islander women suffer higher rates of violence than non-indigenous women and have 11 times more likely to die from abuse.

Antoinette Braybrook, CEO of Djirra, a support network for indigenous women, told the National Indigenous Times Indigenous women are often too afraid to report violence to the police.

“Worse still, we are often misidentified as perpetrators of family violence and criminalized. They terrorize us with the threat of taking our children from us,” he wrote.

Crooks of the Victorian Women’s Trust said that as difficult as it is for white women to leave a violent home, ingrained prejudices in the criminal and police justice systems make it even more difficult for indigenous women.

The $ 5,000 payment to escape the violence is part of a 1.1 billion Australian dollar ($ 820 million) security package for women announced by the government in May.

UnitingCare Australia, the agency charged with administering a two-year trial program, said it was receiving calls and messages on how to apply even before applications opened on Tuesday.

However, while the payment will serve to help women escape violence, the amount is a fraction of estimates of what victims pay to find safety.

In 2017, the Australian Council of Trade Unions found that it cost an average of A $ 18,000 (US $ 14,000), including hiring a lawyer and a moving company, as well as installing a new home with food and appliances. The ACTU said that cost is likely to be even higher in 2021.