Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I raise the matter of the need for greater awareness and action to protect victims of violence in the home. I compliment the work of the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Alan Shatter, in dealing with the issue of domestic and sexual violence. His address at the sexual and domestic violence conference earlier this month clearly demonstrated his support for the eradication or, at least, the amelioration of such crimes. I welcome his commitment to introduce reformed domestic violence legislation. I ask him to consider the points I raise in that context.

I am very concerned about the occurrence of violence in the home and the risks posed to the safety of the injured parties, the majority of whom are women, and also children who are affected by domestic violence in many ways. Often, they are the victims of the violent perpetrator. There seems to be a myth that only the mother experiences domestic violence, but international research demonstrates the co-occurrence of child abuse and domestic violence. Domestic violence has an impact on the physical safety and emotional development of the child. The new Article 42A of the Constitution will ensure the voice of the child is heard in court proceedings on issues of access, custody and guardianship. Children living in homes in which they experience domestic violence must have their voice heard in family law proceedings. I ask the Minister to reinstate the makiing of child welfare and safety assessments. It is not right that custody and unsupervised access can be granted to a parent who is a perpetrator of domestic violence. The court must be satisfied that a child will be safe before granting unsupervised access. Therefore, there needs to be a child welfare and safety assessment carried out by a professional probation officer or social worker.

The argument made is that such provisions cost money and a moratorium on the making of public appointments is in place. However, I ask the Minister to look at the system as it stands. A person accused of an indictable crime is means-tested and may be granted immediate free legal aid. This is not the case for victims of domestic violence. Within the constraints of the budget available, I ask that X amount be granted for criminal cases and Y amount be retained for cases of domestic violence. It seems more resources are being offered to criminals if they pass the means test, while women and children suffering from domestic violence cannot avail of services. Children have no voice in the family courts and oftentimes are very distressed when sent back to the violent home. They are emotionally abused when forced to witness the abuse of their mother. Therefore, there needs to be a risk assessment carried out. The commitment to Children First and Article 42A of the Constitution to give a voice to children must be upheld in law and also in its spirit.

In criminal cases a court can be called to arraign criminals, but this is not the case for abused women who may have been battered, beaten and raped. Victims of domestic violence need out-of-hours protection services. If a domestic violence incident occurs on a Friday evening, there is no recourse to the courts until at least the following Monday. While gardaí can arrest in certain cases, station bail is usually granted within a few hours. In other cases, gardaí may be unable to make an arrest owing to a lack of evidence. The perpetrator of violence who is neither arrested nor charged is free to return to the scene of the abuse which, in a case of domestic violence, is the home. In these cases the only option for women and children who have reason to be fearful is to leave. However, family and friends may not be willing to accommodate them, while the women's refuges are often full.

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