Over the past seven months, the NT Coroner has explored the lives and deaths of four Aboriginal Territorian women who were killed by their partners.
Kumanjayi Haywood
Kumanjayi Ragurrk
Miss Yunupingu
R. Rubuntja
We pay our deepest condolences to their loved ones. We recognise the devastating toll that domestic and family violence has on those experiencing violence, mostly women and children, and particularly Aboriginal women and children, everyday across the Territory. Since this Coronial process started, at least two more women in the Territory have been killed, allegedly by their partners. Domestic and family violence in the Territory is a crisis and needs urgent and significant response.
Frontline workers and staunch advocates across the Territory have made it clear through Coronial evidence and the recent 16 Days of Activism, that the DFSV sector is severely underfunded and is crippling under the weight of demand.
In September, the NT Government released the second action plan under the 10 year Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence (DFSV) Reduction Framework. It commits to a range of important initiatives. However, has been accompanied with short term and inadequate funding.
We need significant and long term investment and commitment. Pockets of short term funding set programs up for failure and contribute to workforce challenges. As has been revealed in evidence tendered to the Coronial, investment of $180 million over five years from the NT Government was estimated to be the bare minimum investment required to turn the tide. Our members are feeling deep disappointment and despair about the level of funding committed to Action Plan 2 under the DFSV reduction framework – $20 million over two years.
The following ask can and should be implemented immediately:
Invest an additional $180 million over five years into DFSV prevention and reduction
In the longterm, we also need the Commonwealth to step up to the plate and direct funding to the NT that reflects the extraordinary need. As so many other advocates continue to do, and as a matter of urgency, we call on the Federal Government to increase the domestic and family violence related funding to the NT through a needs-based methodology. We recognise that the Commonwealth already provides some additional funding in recognition of the NT’s unique needs. We are grateful for this top up but it is not sufficient considering that the DFV homicide rate in the NT is seven times higher than the national average. Or that the DFV assault rate in the NT is four times higher than the national average.
We must ramp up community-led prevention initiatives, bolster the capacity of DFSV specialist services, provide ongoing, specialist DFSV training to frontline responders, provide support to people experiencing violence, including children and young people, intervene with and support people using violence to choose not to use violence anymore, change community attitudes that allow DFSV to go unchecked and provide appropriate healing support for individuals, families and communities.
NTCOSS thanks all those, including many from our member organisations, who have given courageous evidence at the Coronial hearings and continue in their tireless advocacy. We know this process and this year has been tough. Your experiences and wisdom are vital in enabling the Coroner to make bold and effective recommendations.