Ms ...
Department Foreign Affairs & Trade
....@dfat.gov.au
Dear ...,
Congratulations on your informative and entertaining address at the recent ... It’s great to have someone young and enthusiastic who grew up in ... come back to encourage and inspire local students. (Whilst I remember you from school, you might not remember me as I am a few years older than you, one of my ..., was in the same grade as your ...)
The reason I am contacting you is in connection with something you mentioned in your presentation - support and assistance to Australian citizens overseas (as well as the information you shared during your address at the recent ..., your mother had previously told me a story in connection with your visits to Australian victims of the London bombing while they were still in hospital in London) and the traumatic and desperate situation of Australian children and women trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse.
On behalf of my children and myself, and another Australian women, “Jane” and her children, I am begging for assistance, support and advocacy for us as Australian women and children trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse to ensure our safety, security and access to justice, so that we can all be safely home in Australia with our families as soon as possible, from anyone who believes that Australian children and women deserve safety, security, support and judicial fairness, especially in circumstances involving domestic violence.
This situation has been so traumatic that ... attempted suicide and I still cannot get any assistance. I am extremely concerned for my children’s welfare, wellbeing and safety, my wellbeing and safety, the wellbeing and safety of the other Australian woman and her children mentioned above and all other children and women in this traumatic situation.
My priority is for my children and I and “Jane” and her children to be safely home in Australia with our families immediately, and for others in similar traumatic circumstances, who are unknown to me, to also receive immediate assistance and intervention - to provide the safety and justice we have been denied for so many years.
As I have now used all my resources to fight the systems that should have protected us, to advocate for us and to try and sustain myself through this ordeal I no longer have the resources, finances or hope to continue unassisted, I continue to be concerned about our safety and wellbeing, and my personal possessions still in Canada in a rented residence and important stored documents still in Canada. Up until now the government has chosen to ignore our traumatic situation and refuse us the support and compassion so readily available to so many other Australians in traumatic, dangerous or even criminal difficulties overseas but we need and deserve support and assistance immediately.
A recent joint Australian Government Media Release, “Australia comes in from the cold on Women’s rights” dated 24/11/2008 from the Minister for Housing and the Minister for the Status of Women, Tanya Plibersek, and Robert McClelland, Attorney-General, announces the government is acceding to the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and states “Becoming party to the Optional Protocol demonstrates our commitment to the promotion and protection of the rights of women, both at home and abroad”. The media release goes on to say “It will also add credibility to our offers of support to women across our region”. These ministers have the political will and resources to offer support to women in our region but not for Australian women and their children trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse. If there was the political will, "Jane" and I and our children could have all been in Australia with our families for Christmas many years ago. There was, after all, political will for government intervention for “judicial fairness” to bring David Hicks home before the federal election and to spend $10 million to rescue Douglas Woods from Iraq within 45 days!
How will it effect Australia’s credibility internationally when it becomes known through my information and complaint that at the time our government was preparing to accede to the Optional Protocol to the United Nations CEDAW convention the same government was refusing to provide Australian women and their Australian children who were trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse any of the support, intervention, assistance or advocacy they deserved and needed to ensure they received safety, security and justice?
Refusing us any assistance, support or intervention ignores the dangers faced by women and children when leaving situations of domestic abuse, which we have had many reminders of through the deaths and attacks in our home state New South Wales just in the last twelve months. Refusing to assist us ignores the culture in (province), Canada, a province where a political party was abolished by court order due to corrupt practices while in government, police officers were eventually found guilty of dumping indigenous males on city outskirts where some froze to death and then conducted their own (exonerating) inquiry into these deaths, an innocent young man, David Milgaard, was decided to be guilty of a vicious rape and murder and served nearly thirty years in jail for this crime while the (province)Justice Department refused to respond to or investigate any of the information that would have proved his innocence and spared him many years of abuse and trauma (see www.milgaardinquiry.ca ).
Refusing to ensure we are safe and receive justice ignores the many letters written on our behalf by service providers, a doctor, a social worker, a psychologist, a counsellor and others all concerned about my children’s and my safety and the way information from professionals regarding the abuse we experienced and their concerns was misrepresented by a Justice Department employee in his report and court testimony. Refusing to assist us ignores the letter from a service provider to the (province) Justice Department expressing concern about the number of cases they were aware of where male assessors had disregarded the important and relevant information regarding women and children’s experience of domestic violence.
Refusing to assist us ignores our human rights and right to justice, safety and security. Refusing to address these issues not only deprives us of the safety, security and justice we need and deserve but also continues to leave other Australian women unaware of and unprotected from a similar traumatic experience and ignores the commitments Australia made when acceding to other United Nations conventions Australia is a signatory to such as The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (which Australia had a significant role in developing through Dr Herbert Evatt), the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (DEVAW) as well as the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW).
Extensive documentation regarding my attempts to obtain safety, security and support for us and deal with the problems encountered in a foreign justice system has been provided to many politicians, government departments, academics and organisations over many years in regards to our situation. This documentation shows professionals (doctor, social worker domestic violence support group, counsellor, heath nurse) concern about the domestic and family violence they believed we had experienced, their ongoing concern for our safety, their recommendation that I have sole custody of my three children and their concern and dismay that their information was misrepresented by a (province) Justice Department employee thereby denying us justice and safety. (See the online resource I created in the form of a blog www.womenwhowant2gohome.blogspot.com for information regarding some of this correspondence, including post “The Perils of Indifference …”, “Further out of view … further out of mind …”, “Dear Mr Prime Minister …”, “A letter to our new prime minister …”, “Waiting and hoping…”.) Further information can be obtained by contacting me, by viewing the online resource I created in the form of a blog www.womenwhowant2gohome.blogspot.com, from the many politicians, government departments, ministers/shadow ministers, academics and organisations this information has been shared with or by contacting Honorary Prof Tony Vinson, who has tried to assist us and been very supportive.
Honorary Professor Tony Vinson
Social Work & Policy Studies, Faculty of Education & Social Work,
The University of Sydney, NSW, 2006
Email: t.vinson@edfac.usyd.edu.au
Ph: 02-9351-6903 Mobile: 0412 035 077 Fax: 02-9351-3783
Or from Dr Peter Jaffe, an international expert on domestic violence who has knowledge of our situation and of Saskatchewan policy and practice, who knows me as being from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. I can also supply you with the contact details for “Jane” the other Australian woman who with her four children is in a similar traumatic situation in Saskatchewan, Canada.
Dr Peter Jaffe
Director Emeritus
Centre for Children and Families in the Justice System
(formerly the London Family Court Clinic)
London, Ontario, Canada
And
Academic Director
Centre for Research in Violence Against Children and Women
Faculty of Education
University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
Ph: 01-519-661-2018
Email: pjaffe@uwo.ca or peter_jaffe@yahoo.ca
The implications for children and women when there is an ethical gap between what is said and what is actually done for children and women who have experienced domestic and family violence are very concerning. Despite begging for assistance from many who say they care about these issues (see post “The Perils of Indifference … ) we have been ignored or excuses found not to assist us - despite the willingness to intervene on behalf of David Hicks, Schapelle Corby, the “Bali Nine”, Australians protesting against the Canadian seal hunt, whales, the last asylum seekers on Nauru, and more recently a Chinese asylum seeker accused of corruption in her homeland. The Attorney- General’s Office, International Family Law section has informed me that as our situation is not a Hague Convention Abduction and is a “civil matter” as opposed to a “criminal matter” then there is no responsibility to assist Australian children and women in foreign jurisdictions who have experienced domestic violence and subsequent systemic and judicial abuse. More recently the reason given for the government ignoring us and refusing to intervene or assist was that this was not of “novel public interest” and that “alleged domestic violence” is a “private legal matter”. Many believed David Hicks (who abandoned his partner, daughter and son to go and fight for the Taliban, an organisation that believes in denying women and girls equality and human rights) deserved government intervention to insist he obtain “judicial fairness” but when we, innocent and vulnerable Australian girls and women, beg for the same assistance, advocacy and “judicial fairness” everyone has many excuses for ignoring us.
If you need a character reference there are many in ... who could provide that, including ..., who have know me since I was born and my parents prior to that, as well as other family friends throughout Australia and if provided with a mailing address I can forward you copies of relevant information and documentation.
As a mother who has lived overseas with her children I am hoping you can understand how traumatic these experiences might be for Australian women like myself who despite pre-wedding negotiations and commitments find themselves in a situation where they and their children are prevented from their expected future life with family, friends, safety and security in Australia. Any assistance, advocacy, suggestions or support would be greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
...
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