The Greens have called on the Morrison Government to urgently fund services needed to respond to the increased risk of family violence during the Coronavirus crisis.
Greens Senator Larissa Waters urged the government to recognise the risks presented by quarantining at home.
"Everyone deserves to feel safe at home. But experience overseas shows that being at home during the COVID-19 crisis can put some women and children at higher risk of abuse from violent or controlling partners," she said today.
"In the coming months, violence exacerbated by financial pressures, anxiety, restricted access to friends and family, and lack of escape options will mean that some women and children are not safe at home. Services to support those escaping violence are already struggling to meet demand, and the coronavirus will only make things worse.
"The Australian Greens are calling on the government to:
- Urgently fund crisis accommodation.
- Waive time limits on accessing crisis accommodation to ensure women and children can safely self-isolate for a minimum of 14 days.
- Urgently increase funding for frontline domestic and family violence services to respond to
- increased and changing demands by:
- increasing staff;
- implementing public health protocols;
- investing in new technology to allow remote advice and support services to be delivered safely and securely.
- Increase funding for Safe at Home programs.
- Work with the COAG Women's Safety Council to ensure specialist domestic and family violence police officers are available to oversee DVO / AVO applications and enforcement.
"To get through this crisis we all need to work together and find ways to ensure everyone is safe from violence," Senator Larissa Waters said.
