Speaking today at the No to Violence National Conference titled, Leading Radical Change: A Call to Action to End Men's Family Violence, the Chief Justice of the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 1 and Division 2) (the Courts), the Hon William Alstergren AO, joined a chorus of experts and leaders calling for action to end family violence.
In addition, the Chief Justice repeated previous comments about the need for men to be part of the conversation and part of the solution and acknowledged the many strong advocates and organisations, such as No to Violence, working at the coal face to support men to stop using family violence.
"As a male who holds a leadership position, in an area that sees some of the worst of gendered violence, I feel compelled to be part of the push for change. There should be more investment in the wrap around services that are supporting women and children who are victim-survivors of family violence, and also for men who are using violence, to help them capitalise on the opportunity to change their harmful behaviour.
"Men can lead the change for other men and pave the way forward to a positive and accountable future…. Male leaders, family members, colleagues, mates and team members need to step up, because prevention driven by individual members of the community can have the dual benefit of preventing violence in one's own circle, but also changing community attitudes, one person at a time.
"We desperately need a national campaign, and national investment in the programs and strategies that are working, for victim-survivors, and for perpetrators, that acknowledges the epidemic of gendered violence in our country.
"The message needs to be clear that family violence is just not on, and that it shouldn't occur…. We need to prevent this behaviour, and it is men and healthy male role models, that have the biggest role to play. What better legacy to leave, than to pave the way for a generation of men who embody healthy masculinity? We can do that." Chief Justice Alstergren said.
The Chief Justice also took the opportunity to explain, in detail, how the Courts have changed to drastically improve court responses to family violence, which included the engagement last year of the Courts' Director - Family Violence, Access, Equity and Inclusion, Ms Hayley Foster.
Ms Foster said that significant structural, legal and cultural changes have been made in recent years, and the Courts are driven to continue that change and progress.
"A big focus moving forward will be on enhancing consultation with family violence legal and social services and people with lived experience on how we can improve referral pathways and the service system response overall.
"What we recognise is that the earlier we can link parties with specialist legal and family violence services, the better risk can be managed, and the more likely they are to be in the position to provide their best possible evidence to the Courts to assist in the safe and effective resolution of their disputes.
Extensive training and education have been, and continue to be, a major focus for the Courts.
"We are absolutely committed to ensuring our people are equipped with the necessary knowledge and skills to interact with families in a family-violence informed, trauma-informed way that is culturally safe and inclusive of all Australian families," Ms Foster added.
