Residential Tenancies (Domestic Violence Protections) Amendment Bill
23/09/2015
The Hon. K.L. VINCENT: I rise today in support of this bill, which strikes Dignity for Disability as a simple, common-sense measure to give vulnerable and grieving people a greater chance to leave dangerous situations and build a better, safer life for themselves. Of course, I believe this is especially important where children are involved, and I congratulate the government on this move.
Whilst I do not want to take away from the importance of this issue and the particulars of the issue we are discussing, there are some other factors I would like to put on the record, including some questions about this bill and how it will work in practice, for which I hope perhaps the minister can put some answers on the record. Those questions are:
1. What redress will be available to homeowners for loss of expected rent and other costs associated with the premature termination of a lease?
2. How long does the minister expect the tribunal to take to make a decision about whether a lease can in fact be terminated under this measure? Given that we are discussing people experiencing domestic violence and therefore in quite desperate situations, what measures will be in place to expedite decisions?
3. What information and support will be in place to help people understand the tribunal process, including people with low levels of literacy and people who need information in Easyread or languages other than English, including but of course not limited to Auslan (Australian Sign Language)?
If the minister could provide some answers to those questions, it would be much appreciated.
Having now put those on the record, I will move to another issue I want to put on the record, and that is—I do not think it will come as any surprise to members—the issue of the increased rate at which women with disabilities in particular experience domestic violence. There are several compounding factors which make it a lot more difficult for women experiencing domestic violence if they have disability to leave those situations.
These include: the inaccessibility of emergency housing; the lack of other accessible housing available in both private and public rental; financial abuse and/or poverty and economic dependence of women with disabilities on the person who may in fact be their abuser; the estimated 45 per cent of people with disabilities nationwide living at or below the poverty line, meaning that private rental may not be an option for them in the first place; and the fact that what would otherwise be recognised as abuse and neglect is often believed to be a natural part of service or support provision for people with disabilities.
In fact, People with Disability Australia, the peak body, estimates that women with disability experience abusive and violent relationships, both romantic and otherwise, at exceptionally high rates. Many programs designed to develop relationship skills and prevent violence are not accessible to them. Unfortunately, many service providers also mistakenly believe that women with intellectual disability do not need these skills, contributing to their vulnerability.
I want to put on the record some quotes from a very comprehensive report which was done by Women with Disabilities Australia in the early 2000s, but unfortunately many of the issues that this report identifies still remain. This is from a report called, ‘Double the Odds’. Chapter 9 of the report illustrates very clearly many of the barriers that people with disabilities face when wanting to leave a violent situation, so I want to put that section on the record:
Disabled survivors of domestic violence often have a difficult time escaping from their assailants. They are often financially dependent on these individuals, and the physical means of fleeing assault, such as accessible transportation, are often unavailable on short notice. Even if a disabled woman does escape, she may have great difficulty finding an accessible refuge. Facilities without ramps and lifts, TTY’s; attendant care; interpreter services; information in alternative formats; appropriately trained staff and so on, are not an option for women with disabilities. A woman with quadriplegia, in such an instance, could expect to find herself referred to a hospital or institution. In addition, disabled women with children who flee violent situations run the risk of losing custody of their children because authorities may question their ability to care for them alone.
Women with disabilities who are escaping domestic violence have found that their attempts to access appropriate services difficult because, historically disability agencies have been seen to be the appropriate organisation to assist a woman with a disability rather than a domestic violence service … The main barriers to women with disabilities in accessing refuges and other domestic violence services can be grouped into the following areas: communication; information; attitudes; physical environment; accessing/using a service; and, skills of workers.
Anecdotal evidence shows that women with disabilities have extremely poor perceptions of themselves. This is logical and understandable… from their cumulative experiences — even in the most benign of settings — of being the ‘other’. Low self-esteem is a major barrier to a woman with disabilities leaving a situation of domestic violence. Add to this the high incidence of mental health as an adjunct to other disabilities, one can see it would be impossible for a woman with disabilities to have the head space to organise to leave.
Some women with disabilities only have experience of living in supported accommodation. They have no knowledge about alternatives and what it means to acquire that knowledge. Since they are relegated to low income groups they have no means of living independently.
With those few brief words, whilst I certainly do not want to take away from the benefit that this bill I am sure will have, I want to put on the record that there are still significant barriers for many women and other people in our community not only to getting themselves into private rental in the first place, and therefore having a lease to break, but having the supports around them to have somewhere else to go once that lease is broken. With that awareness and with those few brief words, I commend the bill but certainly note that there is still much more to be done.
Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins.
