Domestic, family and sexual violence

Everyone has the right to live free from harassment, fear, violence and abuse. Domestic, family and sexual violence (DFSV) is a gendered issue in which the majority of victim-survivors are women and children and the majority of people who use violence are men.

 

Principles

The Greens believe:

  1. DFSV intersects with other forms of oppression and is disproportionately experienced by First Nations women and gender diverse people in the NT. The impacts of colonisation and intergenerational trauma are directly correlated to the rates of DFSV in First Nations communities.
  2. DFSV cannot be effectively addressed without addressing the patriarchal values which sustain gender inequality across all areas of our society.
  3. It is the responsibility of the entire community to shift the attitudes that create and perpetuate DFSV.
  4. Meaningful accountability for those who use violence must be grounded in rehabilitation and meaningful social and therapeutic support. 
  5. Initiatives to address DFSV in First Nations communities must be governed by First Nations people, particularly First Nations victim-survivors. 
  6. Initiatives to address DFSV must be grounded in best practice, cultural safety and embedded with monitoring and evaluation programs.
  7. Access to support for victim-survivors of DFSV must be equitable across the NT, regardless of remoteness.
  8. Victim-survivors of DFSV are the experts in their own lives and support services must uphold their agency.
  9. While the criminal justice system forms part of a comprehensive approach to addressing DFSV, carceral responses have generally not served to reduce DFSV in NT communities. First Nations people are over-represented in NT prisons and this causes significant grief and harm to First Nations communities. 
  10. DFSV is a significant cause of homelessness in the NT and insufficient housing compounds the impact of DFSV for victim-survivors. 

 

Aims

The Greens want:

Primary Prevention

  1. Measures to ensure First Nations victim-survivors play a central role in informing policies and programs related to DFSV in the NT.
  2. A NT-wide primary prevention strategy that includes permanent funding for comprehensive community education programs that support understanding of the drivers of DFSV in the NT, and the support services available. 
  3. Meaningful engagement of men and boys in the development and delivery of primary prevention programs that aim to address the gendered drivers of violence.
  4. Primary prevention programs that are culturally safe, tailored to the local context and led by the specific groups they aim to engage, including First Nations, LGBTIQ-SB+ and culturally and linguistically diverse communities.
  5. Funding for the development and delivery of DFSV training and resources for specific workforces, including first responders and primary healthcare staff, on a needs-basis.

Frontline support and safe accommodation

  1. Ongoing, needs-based funding for frontline DFSV services, staffed by a qualified and well-supported workforce.
  2. Specific initiatives to increase the number of First Nations people working in the DFSV sector in the NT.
  3. Ongoing, needs-based funding for crisis and temporary housing services for all people experiencing DFSV, including children.
  4. Support to ensure victim-survivors can access safe long-term housing (see the NT Greens  Housing and Homelessness policy).
  5. Measures to ensure victim-survivors are not financially or legally accountable for damage to rental properties caused by users of violence.
  6. The prohibition of landlords and real estate agents from blacklisting tenants who have experienced DFSV on residential tenancy databases.
  7. Ongoing, needs-based funding for services to ensure that people experiencing DFSV have the choice to stay in their homes or communities safely, including support with safety planning, home security upgrades and financial counseling services.
  8. Ongoing, needs-based funding for specialist DFSV services that are safe, accessible and relevant to children, people with disabilities, First Nations people, culturally and linguistically diverse communities and LGBTQI-SB people.
  9. Ongoing, needs-based funding for First Nations-owned and -controlled services that provide support for First Nations victim-survivors as well as users of violence. 
  10. Ongoing, needs-based funding to increase the provision of men’s behaviour change programs (MBCPs) which are culturally safe and trauma-informed, and available to all NT residents regardless of remoteness.

Access to justice

  1. Ongoing funding for mandatory DFSV training for all police officers and officers of the court to reduce perpetrator misidentification and support trauma-informed responses.
  2. An inquiry into the effectiveness of mandatory reporting in reducing and effectively responding to DFSV in the NT. 
  3. A review of the processes of the criminal justice system to identify areas for reform to reduce re-traumatisation of victim-survivors. 
  4. Increased provision of interpreters within the criminal justice system, especially for First Nations languages.
  5. Increased training and support for First Nations people to be employed in all areas of the criminal justice system.

Trauma and recovery

  1. Ongoing, needs-based funding for counseling, psychological and trauma support services for both victim-survivors and people who use violence, including culturally specific services and services that are available in remote communities.