Executive Summary
Over one million children in Australia are victims of domestic and household violence. Children become victims of family violence both directly and indirectly. Family violence is worse among the minority groups such as the Aboriginal community and the Torres Strait Islander societies. Culture plays a major role in breeding or tolerating domestic violence to continue taking place in the society. The government of Queensland does not have adequate policies and legislations to ensure the safety of children in the society. Accessibility to resource centers is limited for children victims of domestic violence. Functional institutions, employers, media and the government have a lot to offer to ensure that the domestic violence towards children is reduced. This has prompted the need to come up with prevention strategies which will aid victims of domestic violence and see it come to a stop.
Recommendations
1. The government should come up with legislations and policies which will ensure effective reporting of child abuse incidences
2. Institutions in the society such as media, hospitals, schools and community groups need to play the role of educating everyone in the society on detecting signs and symptoms of child abuse.
Introduction
The effect of domestic violence together with its impact on youngsters in Australia first became a concern in the 1970’s. The lack of an efficient justice system and accessibility of support has caused children victims to go on without the much needed care. Children are more vulnerable and face a greater risk in the society. Those living in the aboriginal communities and the Torres island communities face a more eminent risk due to the cultural norms and restrictions imposed by these communities. Witnessing domestic violence in their families leaves most of these children traumatized. Domestic violence is associated with the negligence of children and child abuse.
Domestic violence has an adverse effect on a kid’s physical, emotional, social and psychological welfare of the child. Children who witness domestic violence are also probable to become victims and committers of violence in their adult life. Children are affected by domestic violence both directly and indirectly (Government of Queensland, 2016). Children are forced to hear, watch or witness domestic violence. Children are at times used as weapons during incidences of domestic violence or in other instances forced to spy on their parents. Children are at times forced to take the blame for the domestic violence and might fall into physical harm trying to intervene during incidences of domestic violence. Sometimes these children are used as hostages by conflicting parents. The consequences of domestic violence on children include pervasive fear, depression, antisocial behavior, esteem issues, loneliness, and poor performance in school, peer conflict and increased tendencies of substance abuse (NSW Government, 2015, p. 6). Early intervention policies and procedures that ensure that those who are considered at the highest threat of violence are identified, to ensure that the relevant measures are carried out to offer protection to those facing a high likelihood of domestic as well as family violence and also to modify the attitudes and behaviors of perpetrators.
Terms of References
The main issue of discussion in this report primarily aims to address the early intervention policies and procedure that can be applied by the stakeholders of Queensland to identify those who are most vulnerable to domestic violence: in this case, the children. Domestic violence meted on a spouse has adverse effects not only on the spouse but also the children who are at the most risk . This discussion is centered on the strategies the government of Queensland should regard as the most effective to fulfill this objective. The media should support and create awareness in the immediate community affected: this should not only inform but also reform the attitudes of the perpetrators of domestic violence. In addition, education institutions such as schools and social amenities such a medical institutions can play a key role in early detection of domestic violence meted on children and the effects thereof. Stakeholders in these institutions can train and sensitized toward the plight of children in families marked by domestic violence . This discussion explores the role played by such stakeholders and in addition, the community, which also plays a crucial role in protecting children who are at the greatest risk of the impact of domestic violence. This discussion has extensively explored the activities that the community can engage in to make this possible. The other half of community practice can be completed by the government: through imposition and implementation of policies favoring perpetrators of domestic violence . This will not only curtail the practice, but also reform the attitudes of perpetrators meting domestic violence in addition to mitigating the frequency of domestic violence.
The report addresses the aspects of child abuse with the need to draw effective recommendations on how to make children safer. The introduction part discusses the concept of child abuse and why it is an issue that requires much attention in the society. Two recommendations are discussed including the need for effective child abuse reporting framework such that everyone realizes that they have a duty of care to ensure the authorities are aware of any forms of child abuse and that swift response is done to capture the perpetrators. The other recommendation is for social institutions such as the media, health acre settings, community groups and schools to be involved in passing information regarding detecting of signs of child abuse by shifting focus from the physical injuries that are visible. The report’s conclusion part summarizes the recommendations suggested proving why everyone in the society needs to play their role in making children safer.
Forms of government legislations and policies to make children safer
Most people including the children depend on the government to protect them from incidences of child abuse. This implies that the state has the responsibility to monitor the actions of institutions responsible for protection of children from abuse. Monitoring and dealing with incidences of child abuse on a national scale requires a collaborative approach beginning from the local board comprised of local authorities, health care organizations as well as the police. This implies that a key recommendation is for the government to work closely with the local bodies since majority of the child abuse cases happen at the local levels and are often left unresolved due to limited coordination between the territory authorities. With the system approach to managing child abuse, it is then possible for research on the factors that lead to rise in the cases and ways through which the vice could be eliminated in the society. In most cases, majority of people look up to the government for protection of children’s rights while forgetting the fact that everyone has a role in the implementation of child protection services. It is necessary for the government to ensure that mandatory reporting laws are designed and implemented across all territories with policies centered on training and public awareness program on how community members could identify incidences of child abuse and report to the relevant authorities. The need to have legislation on mandatory reporting is from the fact that at times, there are cases when individuals avoid reporting child abuse cases especially in the situations where the perpetrators could be close friends or relatives. Policies on training and public awareness are important since they enable everyone understand that they have a duty of care towards identifying forms of child abuse and acting promptly to report the incidences. Owing a duty of care to children implies that circumstances under which an individual fails to report suspicious abuse leads to liability in negligence and hence the need for legal consequences for the person withholding critical information. With the parliament making the step to implement and regularly review the reporting policies, it is likely that the designated persons will take personal responsibility and accountability to ensure that the children are safer from both visible and invisible forms of abuse and take the step to report to the relevant authorities. Children are vulnerable to private abuse such that in the event where there are few or no cases reported, it becomes hard for the helping agencies to provide the much needed safety for the children. While the mandatory reporting legislations and the duty of care towards reporting are likely to preventing harm to children, it is likely that such measures play critical role in making sure that those found guilty of child abuse are not allowed to repeat their abusive actions in future. Medical practitioners need to be keen on reporting any physical damages they suspect could be as a result of child battering.
Institutions such as media, hospitals, businesses and community organizations need to play the role of making awareness on how individuals could detect signs of child abuse
The signs and symptoms of child abuse are not easily identified among many people hence the need or the identified institution to take actions in making the public aware of the noticing suspicious behavior of children. In most cases, abused children tend to be scared of letting anyone know that they are being abused for fear of recurrence of the acts such that it becomes difficult for the society to determine whether a child is facing forms of abuse. In other cases, victims of abuse fear the fact that no one will believe their story hence prefer withholding the information and continue suffering mentally and physically. While child abuse may be more than just bruises and fractured bones, it is important that the media, health care settings, community and the private sector be involved in campaigns across the nation that are aimed at making the society aware of the signs, both visible and invisible that could be linked to child abuse. This is because in most cases, failure to report incidences of child abuse is not only associated with negligence but lack of understanding of the signs and symptoms related to child abuse. While physical abuse may be shocking from the physical damage it leaves to the victims, not all child abuse is as obvious as everyone may think hence the need for a collaborative approach in unraveling the invisible acts such as neglecting the child’s needs or making them feel as worthless in the family. The media is a major source of information to everyone in the society with increasing flexibility in the way people get access to information playing a key role in ensuring that a significant majority can detect signs of child abuse even in the absence of physical body injuries. The identified institutions have to realize the fact that the earlier the child abuse is caught, the better the chances of recovery hence the likelihood that the abuser will be arrested and appropriate actions taken. Everyone in the society needs to aware of sings such as excessive withdrawal of a child, persistent fear, and extreme behavior such as aggressiveness that are uncommon for a normal child. Such symptoms and signs can only be noticed if information is passed through the media as well as public awareness and training done by community groups, health care settings and private business sector who play the role of maintaining effective corporate social responsibility programs.
Conclusion
Domestic violence towards children has negative impacts on the wellbeing of the child, and there is the need for government and social institutions to come up with policies and legislations that make children free from any forms of abuse. Current government policies and legislations by the government of Queensland are not sufficient to protect children if the media, school curriculums, health care settings and community groups are not involved in child abuse prevention measures. The judiciary and legal system has a lot of power over the citizens such that everyone needs to be aware that they have a duty of care to report any forms of child abuse and failure to report suspicious signs in children leads to negligence and hence punishment by law. The media since it is the main source of information on the whole nation needs to make significant impact in letting everyone know how to detect signs of child abuse and take appropriate actions. With the help of health care practitioners, major milestones could be achieved in terms of passing information across schools and the community with public awareness and training enabling majority to identify both visible and hidden forms of child abuse.
References
Campo, M., Kaspiew, R., Moore, S. & Tayton, S., 2012. Children affected by domestic and family violence. Australian institute of family studies, pp. 3-27.
Government of Queensland , 2016. Royal Commission into Family Violence: Report and recommendations. [Online] Available at: https://www.qld.gov.au/community/documents/gettingsupporthealthsocialissue/[Accessed 26 May 2016].
Government of Queensland, 2015. ‘Not Now, Not Ever’ – Putting an End to Domestic and Family Violence in Queensland: Report and recommendations. [Online] Available at: https://www.qld.gov.au/community/documents/getting-support-health-social-issue/dfv-report-vol-one.pdf[Accessed 26 May 2016].
Laing, L., 2000. Children, young people and domestic violence. Autralian Domestic and Family Violence Clearinghouse, Issue 2, pp. 1-28.
Margolin, G. & Gordis, E. B., 2000. The Effects of Family and Community Violence on Children. Annual Review of psychology, Volume 51, pp. 445-479.
NSW Government, 2014. It Stops Here. NSW Government, pp. 1-48.
NSW Government, 2015. Submission to the Autralian Human Rights commision's examination into children affected by family and domestic violence.. FACs Annual Report , pp. 1-24.
NSW Government, 2016. Aboriginal Family Health Strategy. NSW Government, pp. 1-47.
NSW Parenting Centre, 2002. Domestic Violence and its Impact on Children's Environment. Department of Community Services' Fourth Domestic Violence Forum , pp. 1-10.
Queensland Government, 2012. End Domestic and Family Violence. [Online] Available at: https://www.communities.qld.gov.au/gateway/end-domestic-and-family-violence[Accessed 26 May 2016].
Richards, K., 2011. Children’s exposure to domestic violence in Australia. Trends and issues in crime and criminal justice, Volume 419, pp. 1-7.
UNSW, 2011. The Impact of Domestic Violence on Children; A Literature Review. The Benevolent Society, pp. 1-26.
Appendices
Figure1: Substantiations Of Abuse Among Children Aged 0-17 Years
Source: AIHW, Child Protection Australia, 2001-02.
Figure 2: Children Aged 0-17 Years On Care And Protection Orders
Figure 3: Child abuse patterns in Australia
Source: AIHW, Child Protection Australia, 2001-02.
