Women’s Refuge response to discussion paper

“Strengthening New Zealand’s legislative response to family violence”.

“The discussion document that Hon Amy Adams has proposed covers off the key issues that we would have expected to be highlighted,” says Chief Executive of Women’s Refuge Dr Ang Jury.

“The Minister, through the consultation document, has set out concerns that women’s refuge has been raising for several years now. These include the unique attributes of domestic violence offending, including the recognition of patterns of coercive nature involved in domestic violence, the effectiveness and accessibility of Protection Orders and the overall effectiveness of the various pieces of the response to family violence when considered as a whole,” says Dr Jury.

“It very appropriate that coming up to the 20th anniversary of the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act that we reconsider its effectiveness and look at what else we can do to strengthen the Justice sector response to violence within families.”

Dr Jury supports in principle the idea of a Family Violence offence which could give greater weight to the nature and severity of family violence offending and also more accurately measure and record family violence in New Zealand.

“We welcome this document and will certainly be providing feedback to the submission process,” she says, “we are on the threshold of creating some great changes in New Zealand society and I am very excited about working to see a safer future for women, children and whanau in this society.

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