Alina Thomas

Engender Equality provides specialist counselling, psychoeducation and support for individuals and groups affected by family violence throughout Tasmania. Engender also delivers advocacy and training to address gender inequality and reduce violence against women and children. The safety and wellbeing of children is at the heart of our work as a specialist family violence service. Our practice is child-centred and we seek to elevate the interests of children in all that we do. Engender Equality strongly endorses the development of a legislative framework to uphold children’s safety in response to the recommendations of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse (the Royal Commission).

Children living in family violence situations are directly subjected to, and live within, the web of abuse woven by the dynamics of control and coercion maintained by people who use violence and abuse. A pattern of behaviour and coercively controlling tactics underpin the more obvious incidents of family violence that are widely referred to in legislation and policy. The same course of conduct often continues post-separation despite women trying to address their fears for this in the family law court.

Engender Equality is a highly specialised service provider that helps people of all genders through experiences of family violence, and seeks to provide training, advocacy opportunities, and contribute to the conversation around the prevention of family violence and gender inequality. Engender Equality is an accredited Our Watch training provider, and has run training on the national framework for the prevention of violence against women, Change the Story.

It is because of Engender Equality’s specialisation in primary prevention of violence against women that the organisation opposes aspects of the Religious Freedom Reforms. It is Engender Equality’s belief that the proposed legislative changes will undermine the national primary prevention framework and allow for individuals and groups to condone gendered violence (directly and indirectly), and impact negatively upon our ability to affect change for our service users. Engender Equality recommends, in particular, the exemption to Tasmania’s Anti-Discrimination Act 1998 Section 17(1) be removed from the proposed legislation.

Given Engender Equality’s specialisation in working with women and families who have experienced family violence, this submission is informed by their experiences. This submission is also guided by the work we do in our Advocates for Change program. In partnership with Our Watch, Engender Equality coordinates Advocates for Change, a group of women who have experienced violence and abuse who, after comprehensive training, are supported to speak to the media about their experiences.

Given Engender Equality’s specialisation in working with women and families who have experienced family violence, this submission is primarily focused on their specific experiences. People who have experienced abuse are often significantly disempowered, and may not be able to identify the impact of bullying behaviour as it generally occurs alongside other forms of domestic abuse. Furthermore, for family violence victims who are required to engage in court processes, intimate partner bullying may be difficult to distinguish from an otherwise formal, authorative and alienating process.

Engender Equality commends the Tasmanian Government’s commitment to reducing levels of family violence. It is promising to see the issue of family violence and abuse as a priority and that action is being taken to strengthen family violence laws. As a specialist service, we support people who have experienced family violence and are intimately aware of the adverse effects and long-term suffering that can result from family violence. We are deeply concerned with prevention of further family violence for both individuals and our community as a whole.

Given Engender Equality’s specialisation in working with women and families who have experienced family violence, this submission is primarily focused on their specific experiences. People who have experienced abuse are often significantly disempowered, and may not be able to engage in the kind of community participation that is necessary to ensure that their voices are heard and their concerns addressed. The Inquiry’s call for submissions is an excellent opportunity for organisations to advocate on their behalf. Therefore, we believe it is our role to address the specific issues that are faced by women and children who are disproportionately disadvantaged because of current and historical family violence and gender inequality.

Reproductive coercion is one of many tactics that may be used by a perpetrator of intimate partner violence to maintain control over the victim.

SHE recommends community education to raise awareness of reproductive coercion and of services available to help people who are experiencing such coercion, as well as the development and promotion of professional training and resources to help improve the ability of doctors, social workers and other professionals to assess and support women and girls who have experienced reproductive coercion.

SHE commends the Tasmanian Government’s commitment to addressing the issues affecting women
and girls in Tasmania. We welcome the opportunity to contribute to the development of the
Women’s Strategy to address the inequality experienced by women and girls in Tasmania.

In the context of this submission, we note that our clients frequently seek SHE services to support them through the legal process; assistance that is in addition to addressing the experienced violence and abuse itself. It is also our experience that the legal response can fail to adequately address the severity of the violence, the impact on children and the ongoing effects of trauma. Our clients often express their inability to create a sense of safe environment in which to live and recover from the effects of a perpetrator’s coercion, control and violence.