FREE ESSAY ON VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN THE UK

VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN IN THE UK

DISCUSS THE EXTENT OF PROTECTION FOR WOMEN AGAINST MALE VIOLENCE BY THE STATE.
For this essay I am going to look at Domestic Violence against women and what the State
is doing to protect them. Domestic Violence is now a well-known global occurrence
affecting not only women but also their children too. Violence against woman has been
around since the dawn of time. We have all seen cartoon pictures of the caveman dragging
his mate behind him by her hair. It was just something that men did. Woman had no
protection against men especially if they were married to their attacker. For the first
75 years of the 20th century women were seen as meek and subservient to their men and
were also owned by those men. Men had a social right to keep their women under control.
Things began to change from the late 1960's early 1970's. As feminism became more popular
the feelings that men owned their women began to subside. But this change in society did
not so much to change the occurrence and violence of violence in the home. 
So what exactly is domestic violence? " Domestic Violence is usually defined as physical,
emotional, sexual and other abuse by someone (usually but not always a man) of a person
(usually not always a woman) with whom they have or have had some form of intimate
relationship such as marriage, in order to maintain power and control over that person.
It may include threats to kill or harm the woman and/or her children or other family
members" (Barron 1992) Lists of typical injuries sustained by victims include:
? Bruising
? Bleeding
? Hair loss
? Knife wounds
? Scratches to body and face
? Concussion
? Broken/loss of teeth
This list could go and on. Injuries do not have to include physical but also mental. The
cause of domestic violence against women can never fully be documented. There is the
Liberal approach that violence against women is a rare occurrence and that it is only a
small number of men who will abuse. They blame social backgrounds that form a cycle of
abuse. If the father used violence against the mother then the child will see it as
normal. They also feel that to push a man as far as to commit an assault sexual
frustration should also be taken into consideration. But the criticisms against this
approach include the notion that not all men who come from a broken home go out and
commit rape and systematic abuse. They see that the women have to take part of the blame
by the way they act or dress.
Class is another main approach in trying to decipher why men use violence against women.
Violence is attributed to the lower/working classes or black social groups. Sylvia Walby
has attacked this approach by saying that this is not the case. Not all under educated,
low paid or low status men go out and rape and abuse.
Radical feminists see domestic violence as a widespread and classless act. They see that
men are expected to take the lead in a situation, they are supposed to be strong and
macho. They go to war and fight for their countries. Their strength is something to be
looked up to not down on. Their strength is their basis of power. The critics against
this approach say that is does not take into account class or race. Male violence is a
form of social control and the state does not make an attempt to control and eradicate
it. The sate is run by men, for men, to protect men.
Figures to show the extent of male violence against women is difficult to truly estimate
due to the large number of abuse cases that are never reported to the police. Statistics
that have been documented are alarming to say the least.
? 1 in 4 women may experience violence in their relationships with men (Women's Aid
Federation {England} report 1992)
? Severe, repeated and systematic violence occurs in at least 5 of every hundred
marriages in the UK: Between 40% and 45% of murdered women are killed by their male
partners; Between 1 and 2 women are murdered by their male partners every week; More that
25% of all violent crime repeated to the police is domestic violence of men against
women, making it the second most common violent crime. (Hague & Malos 1993)
? 100,000 women per year seek treatment on London for violent injuries received in the
home (Punching Judy, BBC1 TV Programme 1989)
? 30,000 women and children stay in refuges in the UK every year; In Wolverhampton, 1 in
6 women had suffered some form of domestic abuse; One quarter of all assaults are in
domestic circumstances (Domestic Violence - Report of an Inter-Agency Working Party
1992)
? In Edinburgh Scotland out of 3020 cases of violence reported to the police, three
quarters of those were wife assault.
These figures from all over the country are only the reported cases of abuse. 
So we can see that domestic abuse makes up a very large proportion of what cases the
police are dealing with. But how affective are the policies in place for victims and
attackers at the moment.
The Home Office issued a circular on Inter-Agency co-ordination on domestic violence in
1995. This was issued to relevant public agencies such as the police and social services.
The recommendations included the need for refuge involvement in Inter-Agency
co-ordination, which is widely accepted as essential. Refuges are at the forefront of
domestic abuse. They are the ones who see what domestic abuse can do to a woman and her
children first hand. They are uniquely able to monitor the impact of the entire policy
framework (housing, benefits, civil and criminal law, police practice etc) on women and
children in the middle of the war zone of domestic abuse. Inter-Agency projects involved
many agencies including Women's Aid, other women's community organisations, police, local
authority, probation, Crown prosecution, Victim Support, Health services and solicitors.
In January 1995 there were at least 79 established inter agency projects that had been in
existence for more than a year, at least 25 projects that were more or less established
and had been in existence for more than 6 months, and at least 55 projects in the process
of setting up. (Hague and Malos 1995)
In 1990 the Home Office issues a circular (C/60/90) to all police forces requiring them
to develop an effective response to domestic violence. Since then many police forces have
set up Domestic Violence Units to respond to victims and assist them in pursuing criminal
prosecution, civil protection measures or moving them to a refuge or other place of
safety.
So is the State doing anything to protect women from violence within the home? The
Violence against Women Initiative is part of the ?250 million Crime Reduction Programme
which the Home Secretary announced in the summer of 1998. The CRP is evidence led
programme that aims to reverse the long-term rise in crime by identifying and piloting a
range of cost effective approaches to reducing crime. ?6.3 million has been made
available to local agencies/multi-agency partnerships to develop and implement local
strategies for reducing two types of violence experienced by women: Domestic Violence and
Rape and sexual assault by known perpetrators. Now at least the state is actually
admitting that domestic violence is something that cannot be kept swept under the carpet
any longer.
The 1993 Home Affairs Select Committee (HASC) Report on Domestic Violence has helped to
bring domestic abuse out into the open. It findings noted that domestic violence is not
limited to any particular class or social group as some approaches have. From April 1999
a new definition of domestic violence came into effect for use in police returns to the
HMIC (her majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary). This definition was intended for
statistical purposes only, and was designed to allow easier comparison of domestic
violence statistics between police forces and to give a better understanding of the
nature of information being collected. Organisation were encouraged to make their own
definitions according to local needs and circumstances and Forces remain free to use
whatever definition they wish for local record keeping. The definition reads:
"The term 'domestic violence' shall be understood to mean any violence between current or
former partners in an intimate relationship, wherever and whatever it occurs. The
violence may include physical, sexual, emotional or financial abuse"
This at least widens the goalposts when dealing with domestic abuse as before the police
were reluctant to get involved within domestic disputes. Before, domestic violence was
seen as a crime less worthy than others assaults. In July 1990, guidance was issued to
the police in England, Wales and Scotland (1991 Northern Ireland) for dealing with
incidents of domestic violence. The guidance emphasised:
? The over riding duty to protect victims and children from serious attack
? The need to treat domestic violence as seriously as other forms of violence
? The use and value of power of arrest
? The dangers of seeking reconciliation between assailant and victim
? And the importance of record keeping to monitor the policy in practice
With more effort being made on the side of the police with the set up of more Domestic
Violence Units within stations, some headway is being made in protecting women and their
children. The DVU officers are there to put women at ease, giving support and advice and
helping them get in touch with relevant outside agencies. The DVU practices and
procedures are examined within forces by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary.
Where there are instances of poor practice, reccommendations are made. In the Home
Offices study in 1995 it particulary commended the work carried out by the Domestic
Violence Units and its officers. They may not be able to protect women from the crime of
violence but they are there to listen and advise after the event. (Grace 1995)
The Crown Prosecution Service was responsible for a review on criminal proceedings in
England and Wales in 1993. With this was published and easy to follow guideline on how to
deal with domestic abuse cases. This was later updated in 1995. It emphasised the
desirability of prosecuting cases of domestic violence and made particular mention of how
the CPS should proceed if a woman decides she wants to withdraw her support for
prosecution. (which is in fact a major problem in charging men with domestic violence).
Only this week new proposals have been made by Jack Straw to deal with the withdrawing of
support from the victim. If these guidelines go through it would help in the fight
against violence as, even if the victim decides not to pursue her attacker, the police
can follow through the charge with or without her help. This, in short means that even if
the man sweet talks his wife/girlfriend etc into dropping the charges the police can go
ahead and charge him anyway. This will help the courts in the sentencing of violent men.
The CPS is involved in Home Office-led pilots of "One Stop Shops" for victims of violent
crime where they can be kept up to date with the progress of their case, and Victim
Statements, which allow the victim to provide information on the impact which the offence
has had on them. Domestic violence is included as a case category within these pilot
schemes. Many CPS areas also have representatives who participate in local domestic
violence forums; also, the CPS victims/witness care national training programme is
currently being developed in consultation with Victim Support and will include the
specific needs of victims of domestic violence.
Domestic violence is also central to the Probation Service's core functions of crime
reduction, public protection and victim contact. It is also a critical factor in Family
Court Welfare work and any other work requiring child protection procedures. The
probation service recognises the importance of this and undertakes work both directly
with perpetrators and in support of those who have survived violence. In 1996 ACOP
Position Statement about domestic violence recommended that individual services adopt a
policy on domestic violence which:
? Affirms that domestic violence should be treated as seriously as any other violent
behaviour;
? Promotes the development of a distinctive and effective community programme for
perpetrators;
? Commits the service to working in a way which will promote the safety of survivors and
children and highlights the importance of working in partnership with other agencies;
and
? Recognises that the abuse of male power and control is a central feature to much
domestic violence
The Home Office, with HM Inspectorate of Probation, is currently developing a training
pack on domestic violence to inform the work of the probation service and assist officers
in dealing with offenders who have a background in perpetrating domestic violence. Also,
the Probation Service is currently working on developing an accredited national programme
of perpetrator programmes. This will include a number of programmes for the perpetrators
of domestic violence which will be piloted through the Home Office "Pathfinder"
initiative.
There has also been a forward thinking change within Part IV of the Family law Act 1996
that deals with domestic violence. The Lord Chancellor implemented this change in October
1997. The Act now requires the police and court to attach the power of arrest to an
occupation order or non-molestation order if the respondent has used or threatened
violence against the applicant or child concerned unless it is unnecessary for their
protection. Formerly only current spouses and cohabitants could apply for a remedy
against domestic violence, but the Act now also covers spouses, former cohabitants and a
number of other categories of people within a broadly defined domestic or family
relationship. This made it possible for girlfriends' current or past to have the same
protection as wives.
The safety of fleeing victims of violence is also an important factor when looking at how
the state is helping to deal with violence. At the moment many of the "safe houses" for
battered women are solely charity based. This means that if the money stops coming in
from benefactors then the house has to close. There is a report due for release in spring
2000, which will hopefully tackle this problem. Within this review it is hoped that state
funding will be released to help house victims as well as giving them the support they
need to survive their ordeals. 
Finally addressing offending behaviour is something we must touch upon. There has been an
evaluation carried out on two courts ordered treatment programmes for men who had been
found guilty of violence against their female partners. ("Change" & Lothian Domestic
Violence Probation Programme). The evaluation compared treatment programmes with either
more traditional criminal justice sanctions. The research, though base on a small number
of men, found that all criminal behaviour justice interventions (fines, community
service, prison) appeared to have positive effects on the behaviour of the men convicted
of violence against their female partner. However, the two Scottish re-education
programmes were the most successful in reducing violence and associated coercive
behaviour. The full report into this was published in 1996 (Research Evaluation of
Programmes of Violent Men). 
In conclusion to the barrage of information given in this essay I have come to see that
pre 1980 society or the state did not see a problem with domestic violence. It was just
something that happened within some marriages and was coped with. The police were not
interested in getting involved in domestic disputes, the courts didn't really seem to
have any set rules in how to deal with violent men and there was no outside help there
for women who had to live with the threat of violence on a daily basis. Now there are
Domestic Violence Units and officers in most of the countries police stations who have
been trained to deal with female victims. The Government is trying to set policies to
protect women from their violent partners and give them the help they need. Refuges are a
more frequent occurrence than say 20 years ago. Women do have the support they need when
either they get hit just once too often or too badly that they have no choice but to seek
help or end up another fatality statistic. But all these Acts and reviews and safe houses
do not protect the women in their own homes. Some men still feel it is their right as
husbands or partners to lash out at women if they feel like it. All the policies in the
world are not going to help the women at that moment in time. But saying that, she does
not have to suffer for years on end because she has nowhere to go and no help available.
Domestic violence is a crime, but it a crime that still goes on today. The state can only
protect and provide to a certain extent, the rest is up to society to educate the youth
of today and tomorrow that violence towards another, especially a women is not a mans
right. It cannot be tolerated or accepted. The state can only go so far, the rest is up
to better education from a young age.
Bibliography
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Barron et. al. 1992 WAFE Evidence to the Home Affairs Select Committee Enquiry into
Domestic Violence Bristol: WAFE
Woman's Aid Federation (England) Report 1992
Hague & Malos 1995 Against Domestic Violence: Inter Agency Initiatives Bristol SAUS
Punching Judy BBC Television Programme 1989
Domestic Violence - Report of an Inter Agency Working Party 1992
Mooney J 1994 The Hidden Figures: Domestic Violence in North London London Islington
Police & Crime Unit
Inter-Agency Circular; Inter Agency Co-Ordination to Tackle Domestic Violence Home
Office, 1995
Grace S 1995 Policing Domestic Violence in the 1990's Home Office Research Study
British Crime Survey 1996 The Home Office
Dobash/Dobash/Cavanagh/Lewis 1996 Research Evaluation of Programmes for violent Men
Scottish Office Central Research Unit
Dobash/Dobash/Cavangh/Lewis 1996 Re-Education Programmes for Violent men - an Evaluation
Home Office Research Findings No 46
Domestic Violence & Repeat Victimisation Home Office Police Research Briefing Note No
1/98
The Family Law Act Part IV 1996