The following residents of the ACT draw the attention of the Assembly to the alarming impact of family violence in our community.
Since the ACT election in October last year, there has been 302 victims of family violence, with 378 family violence assaults recorded across the ACT. On average, police attend 13.5 family violence incidents each day. Meanwhile, victim support organisations consistently report being underfunded and oversubscribed. Many victims describe their experiences with the justice system as both traumatic and unjust.
Furthermore, the ACT Ombudsman's November 2020 report on the parole processes at the Alexander Maconochie Centre (AMC) highlighted “inadequate policies and procedures governing the parole processes,” with the term "victim" appearing only once throughout the 48-page document.
Your petitioners, therefore, request the Assembly conduct a comprehensive inquiry into the ACT Government's policies on the prevention of Family Violence and the administration of Parole.
This inquiry should examine, but not be limited to, the following issues:
• Assess whether the funds raised through the Safer Families Levy are being allocated effectively to support family violence prevention and victim support services.
• Determine if Domestic and Family Violence Crisis Support organisations receive adequate and sustained funding to meet the needs of victims.
• Investigate the long-term physical, emotional, and psychological effects of family violence on those affected.
• Evaluate whether the parole process ensures that victims feel safe and protected from fear and intimidation.
• Review the types of programmes offenders seeking parole are required to complete and assess their effectiveness in reducing reoffending.
• Examine if the current parole system upholds the human right to safety for victims and if parole is being granted appropriately to offenders of family violence.