In short:
Tasmania's family violence rates continue to rise.
asserted
rates → continue → ?
Advocates say that attitudes towards women are not changing fast enough, while many remain in dangerous situations in a system that remains under-resourced.
asserted
that → say → system
The Tasmanian government is progressing with a range of reforms, including requiring behaviour change courses for serial offenders and disclosures on social media.
asserted
government → progress → media
This past year Tasmania Police recorded more than 7,000 domestic and family violence incidents across the state.
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Police → record → state
That is more than double the number recorded 10 years ago.
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That → record → ?
In the past decade, according to Femicide Watch, 12 Tasmanian women have lost their lives to violence.
uncertain
women → accord → violence
Every one of these women at some point had dreams and goals, they had people who loved them and left this world with a life unlived.
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who → have → life
That is something Romany Wake knows all too well.
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Wake → know → ?
Her mother Rachel was murdered by her ex-husband on Christmas Day almost five years ago.
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mother → murder → Day
"It's crazy to me that numbers are going up and up each day,"Ms Wake said.
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Wake → go → me
"It's just being normalised, like violence against women and children is something that's becoming so normalised that these numbers, while they're scary to look at, don't seem to be affecting anyone.
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they → normalise → anyone
"
Vital to start conversations
Ms Wake and her mother Rachel's stories are well known in Tasmania.
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stories → start → Tasmania
In the years since her mother was murdered, Ms Wake has made it her mission to raise awareness about family violence.
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it → murder → violence
For her it's not just about sharing her mum's story, but helping others who might be living in violent homes realise that it's not normal.
uncertain
it → share → homes
"A lot of my friends, even at school and teachers and people that I grew up around, I don't think they realised the extent of what was happening," Ms Wake said.
asserted
Wake → grow → extent
"Being able to talk freely about what was going on behind closed doors I think has opened a lot of people's eyes.
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I → talk → eyes
"Being able to share my story and tell people, 'Hey, what you're actually going through isn't normal as much as you think it is, it's really not'.
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it → share → what
I'm hoping that one young person will be able to feel connected to and to feel heard and to realise that something's going on."
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something → hop → ?
Harmful beliefs need to be addressed
That prevention and early intervention space is something family violence advocates want to see more resourcing in.
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advocates → need → resourcing
Women's Legal Service Tasmania acting chief executive officer Siobhan Mackay said more needs to be done to change the harmful beliefs and norms that can lead to men's violence against women.
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that → act → women
"We're continuing to see a really high level of men's violence towards women, partly because we're not doing enough around the drivers of violence, so looking at those underlying causes of gendered violence," she said.
asserted
she → continue → violence
Ms Mackay said there needs to be more investment in frontline community services.
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Mackay → say → services
"The whole system is so stretched,"she said.
"
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system → say → ?
We need significant investment in all areas of frontline services, whether that's counselling, legal services, shelters, case management, appropriate accommodation, access to emergency funding so that women and children can leave unsafe situations."
asserted
women → need → situations
Increased disclosure of perpetrators
At the other end of the spectrum is legislative reform to deal with those who have already committed the crimes.
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who → deal → crimes
This year the Tasmanian government announced reforms that have been welcomed by family violence prevention advocates.
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that → announce → advocates
They include changing laws to better capture the patterns of behaviour that make up coercive control, a levy for family violence offenders that supports victims, and a requirement for serial family violence perpetrators to undertake behaviour change courses.
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perpetrators → include → courses
Minister for Family Violence Prevention Jo Palmer said a proposal that would require family violence offenders to declare new relationships on social media and dating profiles is about trying to prevent reoffending.
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that → say → reoffending
"People can make themselves to look as glossy and as fabulous as they want to look [online] and so this is a way of saying, if you have a history in this space, then we are going to tell you that you actually have to come clean with that," she said.
asserted
she → make → that
"It's also a way of saying to those offenders and those perpetrators, 'You're going to be called out publicly on this.
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You → say → this
We are not going to hide this'.
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We → go → this
"We are going to say to our society and to our community: 'This person has done this.
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person → go → this
Violence extends beyond intimate relationships
But there's a key reform, raised by many experts, that it has yet to agree to — changing the definition of family violence, which is currently defined as people who are in an intimate relationship.
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who → extend → relationship
"How that plays out is that it's only two people who are in a more long-term relationship, a more serious relationship, maybe living together, maybe having children together," said Ms Mackay.
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Mackay → play → children
"But we know that the experiences of family violence go so much wider than that.
asserted
experiences → know → that
"There might be children involved, there could be in-laws, brothers and sisters, children, parents, adult children and none of those circumstances are currently covered by the act.
uncertain
none → involve → act
"
Ms Mackay said as it stands people in very short-term relationships, or perhaps more casual ones, are not captured by the act.
asserted
people → say → act
The state government is working on a third tranche of reforms and has confirmed it is considering broadening the definition.
asserted
it → work → definition
Ms Palmer said the government is also investing in early intervention and prevention, particularly in schools, teaching children about respectful relationships.
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government → say → relationships
"[It] is really exciting to see the work that we are doing across our schools, and especially now, where we are just seeing what's happening with sexism and misogyny," she said.
asserted
she → see → sexism
…and 6 more, not listed.
The Aporia