THE DEVIL’S PLAYGROUND – PART 2
The very notion of informing a victim of ‘alleged’ perpetrators being released from prison is farcical for three reasons. One, if the ‘allegations’ are not proven, then the ‘alleged’ perpetrator would not be in prison in the first place. Two, informing the victim is no guarantee they will be safe, only that their life sentence of terror has taken a whole new, horrifying turn where they must uproot their lives, break contact with friends and relatives, and go into hiding, forever looking over their shoulder.
And three, the most telling of all, this only applies to ‘alleged’ perpetrators that are actually investigated, arrested, and charged, and in some cases prosecuted, found guilty and incarcerated. The vast majority of offenders manage to avoid repercussions altogether, by using the law, policies and procedures to circumvent justice, to use financial advantage to purchase a legal outcome, or because they are protected by a rotten system hell-bent on cutting costs or avoiding work by selling-out victims and forcing them to remain silent.
The very fact that victims did not have the right to privacy, that their abusers could access and interfere in every facet of their lives, and could cross-examine them, stare-them down, or otherwise intimidate and inflict terror upon them (even) in court for so long, without these changes being introduced, demonstrates just how bad the fundamental systemic failure and entrenched culture of corruption was. The fact that these laws do not address failures where victims are still denied help proves the need for more correction.
While the Minister for the Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence, and State Government in general, congratulate themselves on these laws and act like they are the saviours of domestic violence victims, their behaviour is unsettling. The fact that they admit they only spoke with organisations that work to support victims should also be setting off alarm bells. How many actual victims have they spoken with? How many of those victims suffered not just abuse at the hands predators who use terror to inflict lifelong harm, but of systemic failure under that entrenched culture of corruption politicians refuses to address?
http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/nsw-government-scheme-helps-domestic-violence-survivors-rebuild-their-lives-20160601-gp92lq.html
It is rare for a government to respond to the needs of the community, particularly the victims of domestic violence and child abuse, unless an election approaches and the media is focusing on the issue, and even then it is usually empty rhetoric designed to placate angry voters, the illusion of action. When the government makes an effort to provide fee-free education and training to help victims and teenage mothers rebuild their lives and move forward, to escape the cycle of depression, poverty, and Welfare, it’s a step in the right direction, even if the motive is to reduce welfare expenditure.
Training, education, and the chance to contribute to society in a positive manner are a great way to help victims rehabilitate. Too many victims are ostracised by the community, fight to overcome PTSD, the dark and lonely struggle within, the instinctual aversion of others who see them as ‘troubled’, and the feeling of disassociation that disenfranchises them from society. Having access to money allows them to participate, invest in society, the economy, and themselves, to fit in, and feel, in some sense, normal.
But when figures concerning Legal Aid funding are considered, and responses to requests for assistance, the $40M a year for five years is revealed as shockingly inadequate. A sizeable chunk of the funding for Legal Aid goes toward domestic violence issues. The LNP Federal Government 30% funding cuts to this service for the disadvantaged would, according to advocates, lead to staff cuts and another 36,000 people in need being turned away.
But despite this, Malcom Turnbull and his mates continue with the opportunistic rhetoric, saying what the public want to hear, making all the right noises… but consistently fail to follow through. Worse, actions of the LNP have stripped funding, confidence, and effectiveness from agencies who are supposed to help the victims, and their inactions have allowed predators to be elevated into positions of authority, inflicting their vile attitudes on victims and making the situation worse.
In fact, the government’s attitude seems determined to squeeze the victims out of the ‘solution’ altogether. All the inquests and commissions, the recommendations, reveal precious little communication with actual victims. There is no evidence of input from those who have been denied help, and the title ‘Domestic and Family Violence’ removes the uncomfortable reference to child abuse. Even the great Rosie Batty appears to have lost her way, her elevation making her giddy with fame, her focus on women as victims despite the fact that her son paid the ultimate price: children are just as likely (sometimes more) to be the victims.
Anybody who has found themselves in the unenviable position of needing help, or being forced to turn to Legal Aid after finding the courage to come forward, and suffer the horrors and terror of the so-called police and public service agencies (that are supposed to help victims of domestic violence and child abuse), will know all too well that they are on their own: Legal Aid lawyers, more often than not, will find all manner of excuses to avoid helping the victim, and instruct them to remain silent. Private Legal services are beyond the financial means of most victims, only interested in how they can profit from a victim, and if there is no profit to be had, they will also tell the victim the same: remain silent.
Victims subjected to the indifference, apathy, idleness, negligence, incompetence, insensitivity, mockery, insults, unfounded and defamatory accusations, and intimidation, at the hands of police and public servants have no recourse to make a complaint, and subjected to the same if they try. Instead, victims are forced to suffer and endure this despicable, reprehensible behaviour, while the criminal behaviour and systemic failure continues and escalates, too often with fatal consequences. Politicians and the so-called Crime and Misconduct agencies they control are part of the problem. They, too, are infected by the entrenched culture of corruption, a malignant canker that festers and rots in the heart of our society.
The victims are dismissed out of hand, too often unjustly blamed for what was done to them with no more evidence than the idiotic judgement of fools who know nothing about the situation because they refuse to listen. They are told there is insufficient evidence to warrant an investigation when the cretin making that statement hasn’t even bothered to look at any of the evidence. The authorities adopt a “take no action” response rather than “take no chances” because they can’t be bothered to do their damn job and assume the accused will simply deny the accusations. The victim is advised to remain silent, and intimidated into doing so if they persist in seeking help for the purpose of finding a small measure of justice and dignity.
This bullshit has been going on for decades. The rot starts at the top and corrupts everything underneath. Management within the public services from police and so-called child protection agencies, to Health and the Legal System, is filled with far too many gutless thugs who compensate for their incompetence by lashing out at those beneath them to distract from the evidence that they are out-of-their-depth. They bully all those who do not bend knee (even good police and public servants), who they perceive as a threat, until that ‘threat’ can be fired, or their victims quit and leave just to escape the remorseless, relentless bullying.
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