Post by lace on Aug 16, 2006 17:16:02 GMT -5
[glow=red,2,300]Belfast UK
Viewpoint: Domestic violence victims need a voice[/glow]
16 August 2006
[glow=red,2,300]Violence against women and children within the home is one of the most despicable crimes[/glow], yet it has never received the attention it is due. A shocking UN report, "Behind Closed Doors: The Impact of Domestic Violence on Children" indicates that as many as 1 million UK children could be affected - which would mean more than 20,000 in Northern Ireland.
The title of the report indicates why domestic violence goes unnoticed - it takes place at home, behind a closed front door, and does not involve strangers or the public at large. Everyone knows it goes on, in all types of homes, but it seldom hits the headlines because the victims are too frightened to speak out in their own defence.
That kind of attitude should be changing, in a society where people know their basic human rights, but it will take a lot more exposure of the problem, and talk about its long-term effects, before the perpetrators feel sufficient pressure to stop. Most importantly, they must feel the law will get to them, and that severe penalties will follow.
The report provides some terrible statistics, showing how children suffer in homes dominated by a violent father, husband or partner.
[glow=red,2,300]It is estimated that 20-50% of women worldwide are in a violent relationship[/glow], including one in five in the Irish Republic. As a direct result, the children are affected through lowered self-esteem, aggressive tendencies and lost educational opportunities.
[glow=red,2,300]If children grow up with violence, there is the danger that they will regard it as normal behaviour[/glow]. They may pass it on to the next generation, becoming violent themselves or accepting violence as their lot in life.
It doesn't take an expert to conclude that such attitudes are bad not only for the individuals directly involved, but for society as a whole. Children can end up damaged for life, if their mothers stay too long in a violent home, and the cost in mental and physical illness, often resulting in suicide, is impossible to calculate.
The first step, in remedying a problem that spans all cultures, nations and incomes, is to open the closed doors and get people talking about what has happened to them.
Without real-life stories, indicating the scale of the disease, governments will not be moved to tighten the law, or demand better enforcement. Only 44 countries, worldwide, have specific domestic violence legislation.
Children need to know that they are not alone, in their suffering, and that there is help at hand, through agencies like Women's Aid and the NSPCC. Northern Ireland's Childrens Commissioner should make tackling the misery of domestic violence a top priority
www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/opinion/story.jsp?story=702674
Viewpoint: Domestic violence victims need a voice[/glow]
16 August 2006
[glow=red,2,300]Violence against women and children within the home is one of the most despicable crimes[/glow], yet it has never received the attention it is due. A shocking UN report, "Behind Closed Doors: The Impact of Domestic Violence on Children" indicates that as many as 1 million UK children could be affected - which would mean more than 20,000 in Northern Ireland.
The title of the report indicates why domestic violence goes unnoticed - it takes place at home, behind a closed front door, and does not involve strangers or the public at large. Everyone knows it goes on, in all types of homes, but it seldom hits the headlines because the victims are too frightened to speak out in their own defence.
That kind of attitude should be changing, in a society where people know their basic human rights, but it will take a lot more exposure of the problem, and talk about its long-term effects, before the perpetrators feel sufficient pressure to stop. Most importantly, they must feel the law will get to them, and that severe penalties will follow.
The report provides some terrible statistics, showing how children suffer in homes dominated by a violent father, husband or partner.
[glow=red,2,300]It is estimated that 20-50% of women worldwide are in a violent relationship[/glow], including one in five in the Irish Republic. As a direct result, the children are affected through lowered self-esteem, aggressive tendencies and lost educational opportunities.
[glow=red,2,300]If children grow up with violence, there is the danger that they will regard it as normal behaviour[/glow]. They may pass it on to the next generation, becoming violent themselves or accepting violence as their lot in life.
It doesn't take an expert to conclude that such attitudes are bad not only for the individuals directly involved, but for society as a whole. Children can end up damaged for life, if their mothers stay too long in a violent home, and the cost in mental and physical illness, often resulting in suicide, is impossible to calculate.
The first step, in remedying a problem that spans all cultures, nations and incomes, is to open the closed doors and get people talking about what has happened to them.
Without real-life stories, indicating the scale of the disease, governments will not be moved to tighten the law, or demand better enforcement. Only 44 countries, worldwide, have specific domestic violence legislation.
Children need to know that they are not alone, in their suffering, and that there is help at hand, through agencies like Women's Aid and the NSPCC. Northern Ireland's Childrens Commissioner should make tackling the misery of domestic violence a top priority
www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/opinion/story.jsp?story=702674