NCJ Number
121090
Journal
Social Justice Volume: 16 Issue: 3 Dated: (Fall 1989) Pages: 103-123
Date Published
1989
Length
21 pages
Annotation
In Australia, the struggle against spouse assault is, in part, a struggle to recognize it both as a political and a social problem.
Abstract
Although incidence data are limited on spouse assault, there are other indicators that wife battering is a major problem. As elsewhere, Australians have been slow to recognize this. Widespread underreporting is the greatest hurdle to the assessment of the prevalence of spouse assault. One in five Australians surveyed by the Public Policy Research Centre in 1988 considered that the use of physical force by a man against his wife is acceptable under certain circumstances. Research reveals that a high percentage of victims have reported dissatisfaction with police interventions in spouse assault cases. In addition to being immediately responsible for enforcing legislation, police are often the only source of round-the-clock assistance to victims. Though specialized spouse abuse crisis intervention services are gradually being established, they cover limited geographical areas and are insufficiently funded to cope with a large-scale problem. Part of the solution to the problem of spouse assault lies in examining and developing the capacity of the system to deliver economic justice for women as a way of eliminating gender inequality and the violence that accompanies it. 1 note, 60 references.