Aware

ACSSA Newsletter No. 11 May 2006

Published by the Australian Institute of Family Studies
ISSN 1448-8140 (Print); ISSN 1448-8167 (Online)
Acting ACSSA Coordinator: Lara Fergus

 

Publications from the Australian Centre for the Study of Sexual Assault (ACSSA) are available from the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS). If you would like to receive future publications as they are released please register your details for the ACSSA mailing list.

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Download - ACSSA Aware Newsletter No. 11 May 2006 (PDF 1.4MB)

 

Contents

 

In this issue

Resources for adult victim/survivors of sexual assault

Welcome to the eleventh edition of ACSSA Aware, the newsletter of the Australian Centre for the Study of Sexual Assault. This issue reviews several resources relevant to adult victim/survivors of childhood sexual assault and those who work with them. For our service profile we talk to Respond SA, a relatively new service for adult victim/survivors of childhood sexual assault established by the South Australian Government in 2004. There is also a contribution by the Royal District Nursing Service Research Unit on the four new resources that the unit has produced in partnership with Catherine House in South Australia. The resource kit includes two books, the first aimed at providing support to adult ictim/survivors around the impact of childhood sexual abuse, and the second aimed at resourcing service providers and group facilitators who work directly with this group. There is also a poster, and a report providing an extensive literature review and recommendations for service provision, as proposed by the research participants.

Also in this issue, we profile the projects that were successful in applying for the first round of funding under the Domestic and Family Violence and Sexual Assault Initiative from the Australian Government’s Office for Women. The twenty-seven projects that received funding aim to reduce the impact of domestic and family violence and sexual assault through community-based action research, related partnership projects and product development.

Artwork used for brochure, depicting child abuse and speaking up.

Artwork used for the 'What the Law Says about Sex' brochure, by Joanne Honeysett of Taungurung, Victoria. Joanne says, 'This painting depicts child abuse and speaking up. The middle of the circle is hands ... children’s hands. The Elders sit outside the circle protecting the children and talking among themselves, encouraging community members to speak up. Each Elder then carries this information back to their communities encouraging others to do the same'.

This edition also includes reviews of several recently released reports, including the Sentencing Statistics for Rape Offences 'snapshot', by the Victorian Sentencing Advisory Council; Amnesty International’s report on military sexual slavery; and the Safe at Work? report by URCOT and RMIT, overseen by the Victorian Statewide Steering Committee to Reduce Violence Against Women in the Workplace. The 'News in brief' section contains further overviews of recently released reports, DVDs and books, as well as news from the sector.

Our good practice profile is of a brochure, What the Law Says about Sex, produced as a joint project between Centrecare Goldfields and the Kalgoorlie Detectives Office in Western Australia. The brochure is aimed at educating on, and preventing, child abuse in remote Aboriginal communities. It covers legal considerations of inappropriate sexual behaviour and encourages reporting of offences and greater awareness of 'what the law says about sex'.

Finally, there are our regular columns on conferences and training as well as literature highlights from recent additions to the ACSSA library collection at the Australian Institute of Family Studies. As always, ACSSA remains keen to receive feedback on how we can better meet the needs of those committed to working against sexual assault, so please continue to provide us with your comments on current or future publications. If this is the first issue of Aware you’ve read, earlier editions can be requested via email or by returning the form on the back page of this issue. And don’t forget, all our publications are freely available online at www.aifs.gov.au/acssa/pubs/pubsmenu.html.

 

The ACSSA team would like to take this opportunity to thank Melanie Heenan, who has decided to leave her position of Coordinator and Senior Research Fellow at the Centre. When Melanie was appointed ACSSA’s first Coordinator three years ago, her task was nothing less than to build the sole national information port on sexual assault from scratch – a task she undertook with great skill, dedication and an infectious enthusiasm. It is thanks to Melanie that ACSSA is what it is: her commitment to ending sexual assault, and her integrity in researching the means to do so, are rare qualities that have not only shaped the workings of the centre, but also enriched the day-to-day lives of those of us lucky enough to work with her. We’ll miss you Mel, and wish you all good things for the future!

ACSSA Publications

As there are so few forums in which those working in the sexual assault field can share information with one another, we are keen to publish articles within this newsletter. We now accept contributions of up to 5000 words, although book reviews, news of conferences, training and research projects are also welcomed (up to 1500 words). If you would like to contribute an article or review to ACSSA Aware, details of how to do so are on the inside back cover of this newsletter. You can access our contributor's guidelines from the website or contact ACSSA directly.

 

News in Brief
Here ACSSA reports on new initiatives, research, policy and program announcements relevant to sexual assault, which have emerged since our last edition.

New report on atrition for sexual offences in NSW

The Attrition of Sexual Offences from the New South Wales Criminal Justice System, by Jacqueline Fitzgerald for the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, 2006

This new report by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) points to continued high attrition rates for sexual offence cases that enter the criminal justice system. It suggests that few sexual assaults are reported to police, of which only a small proportion result in charges being laid. Specifically, of more than 7,000 sexual and indecent assault incidents reported to NSW police each year, only about one in ten result in someone being found guilty in court.

Other key findings contained in the report include the following:

Criminal proceedings involving sexual assault were more likely to be commenced in circumstances that included aggravation, where the report was made within ten years of it occurring, where the victim was female, where the victim knew the offender, and where the victim was over ten years of age.

BOCSAR notes how difficult it is to gain any meaningful insight from police records into why the attrition rates remain so high for sexual offences. They recommend further research be undertaken to track cases from the report stage through to the conclusion of investigations to assess the precise reasons underlying decisions about whether criminal charges will be laid.

They also recommend changes to police recording practices that would see police routinely reporting the reasons why no charges are laid. The director of BOCSAR, Dr Don Weatherburn, attributed the low prosecution and conviction rates partly to reluctance on the part of sexual assault victims to put themselves through the trauma of a court process and partly to the difficulties involved in proving sexual offences where the only evidence is the victim's testimony: 'If victims are treated respectfully, compassionately and kept informed at all times they may be less likely to withdraw their complaint or choose not to proceed'(p 11).

Annual Report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children

Integration of the Human Rights of Women and a Gender Perspective, Report of the Special Rapporteur
on the human rights aspects of trafficking in persons, especially women and children, Sigma
Huda, February 2006.

In her second annual report since beginning her mandate, and her first substantive one in terms of presenting her findings, the United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteur on Trafficking, Sigma Huda, has emphasised the relationship between sex trafficking and the demand for commercial sexual exploitation. The report follows on from the UN Commission on the Status of Women’s assertion last year that 'eliminating demand for all forms of exploitation, including sexual exploitation, is a key element to combating trafficking in women and girls' (at the 2005 Review and Appraisal of the Beijing Platform for Action). Huda examines in some detail how this assertion should translate into practical measures. She begins by explaining what is meant by the term 'demand', then discusses various factors relevant to a proper understanding of demand, and finally 'highlights a variety of methods employed throughout the world by States, intergovernmental organisations, and non-governmental organisations in order to target the demand side of trafficking' (p.1).

At the 2005 Review, the Commission on the Status of Women did not provide a clear interpretation of 'demand'. Since then there has existed a divergence of opinion between those who believe the term should be limited to traffickers themselves, and possibly buyers who knowingly use trafficked women; and those who believe the term should be interpreted more broadly as referring to the demand for commercial sexual exploitation in all its forms. Huda has insisted upon the latter view, noting that 'demand must be understood expansively, as any act that fosters any form of exploitation that, in turn, leads to trafficking' (p.11). In terms of addressing demand, she sees sex trafficking as being distinguished from other forms of trafficking as 'unlike the purchaser of consumer goods produced through trafficked labour, the prostitute-user is simultaneously both the demand-creator and (by virtue of his receipt of the trafficked person) part of the trafficking chain. […] By engaging in the act of commercial sex, the prostitute-user is thereby directly inflicting an additional and substantial harm upon the trafficking victim, tantamount to rape, above and beyond the harmful means used by others to achieve her entry or maintenance in prostitution' (p.12).

Huda further notes that 'there is little reason to believe that any significant amount of prostitution throughout the world exists without use of one or more of the illicit means delineated in the Protocol' (p.13). She is referring to the part of the definition of trafficking in the UN Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children (2000) which clearly identifies such elements as the 'abuse of power or a position of vulnerability' of another person, as a means by which trafficking occurs. She therefore recommends that State parties 'criminalise the use of prostituted persons as a way of fulfilling their obligations under […] the Protocol' (p.16), and sees such criminalisation as the keystone of a human rights approach to eliminating demand for trafficking. She clarifies:

Men do not have a human right to engage in the use of prostituted persons. In some domestic legal systems, men have been granted a legal right to engage in the use of prostituted persons, but […] this right may be in direct conflict with the human rights of persons in prostitution, the vast majority of whom have been subjected to the illicit means delineated in subparagraph (a) of the [Trafficking] Protocol and are, therefore, victims of trafficking. Where the human rights of trafficking victims conflict with the legal rights granted to prostitute-users, the human rights of trafficking victims must prevail. That is what counts as a human rights approach to sex trafficking. (p.15).

The Special Rapporteur emphasises, however, that 'any criminal sanction relating to the commercial sex industry should not be used to penalise trafficked women and children. Domestic laws and policies that penalise prostituted women and children contribute to their vulnerability, and make women and children more susceptible to being victimised by sex trafficking' (pp.16-17). She also recommends States ensure that victims of trafficking are neither criminalised 'nor subjected to punitive measures such as deportation, which would render them vulnerable to other human rights violations and to re-trafficking' (p.17).

Huda also recommends the implementation of extraterritorial jurisdiction as a strategy to target the demand side of sex trafficking. She notes that a number of states have implemented extraterritorial jurisdiction that would enable the prosecution of child sex tourists, and commends this as an important first step. In addressing sex tourism, Huda places responsibility on 'source countries', noting that 'socio-economic, political and cultural conditions in many parts of the world make women and children particularly susceptible to being trafficked, thereby fostering the supply side of trafficking. These conditions are often ignored or even tacitly encouraged by Governments, often for the purpose of encouraging tourism within their borders' (p.7)

British consent campaign targets men

The United Kingdom (UK) Home Office has launched a media campaign warning men that having sex without consent could lead to a prison sentence. The £500,000 campaign includes radio and magazine advertisements, stickers on condom machines and posters in pub toilets. The main message of the materials is that unless a woman actively says 'yes' to sex then men must assume the answer is 'no'. The campaign comes amid low conviction rates for rape cases in England and Wales, and aims to reduce the number of sexual assaults that occur when a woman is very drunk. Changes to existing laws are also being considered, to allow juries to decide whether a woman was too drunk to give consent.

The objective of the campaign is to put the onus on men to make them aware of their responsibilities and ensure the woman is consenting. Stephen Cooper, a campaigner against wrongful rape conviction, said 'steps should be taken by the man to say 'would you consent to sexual activity later on in the evening?' ' But if a woman was drunk, a man should not consider sleeping with her, he said.

The campaign comes only months after Amnesty International found that one third of people in the UK believed a woman was partially or completely to blame for being raped if she had behaved in a flirtatious manner. A survey in January by Cosmopolitan magazine further highlighted how many women themselves did not understand the complexity of the consent issue. The UK Home Office Minister Fiona Mactaggart said she hoped the adverts would 'encourage women to think that the law was on their side'.

Two new DVDs

Understanding Sexual Violence: The Judge's Role in Stranger and Nonstranger Rape and Sexual Assault Cases, DVD Curriculum produced by the United States National Judicial Education Program, Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women, 2005.

This DVD is intended as a self-directed or group curriculum resource for education about rape trials (particularly nonstranger rape). It is designed for a variety of audiences, including judges, law enforcement officials, prosecutors, lawyers, probation and parole departments, victim/survivor advocates, health professionals and researchers. Though the focus is on the United States system, the main purpose of the curriculum is to challenge the pervasive rape myths that can permeate any courtroom. A wide range of contemporary research on sexual assault is presented, from feminist-informed analyses of rape, to the neurobiology of trauma and studies of jury decision-making. It also includes panel discussions in which judges talk about how they have applied this information in their own courtrooms. Understanding Sexual Violence can be viewed through a DVD player, or on a computer as a DVD-ROM, and in the latter case supporting materials can be accessed, including summaries of the research cited, an Instructor's Guide for trainers, and suggestions from judges from more than twenty jurisdictions for applying the material in the courtroom. These resources can also be obtained from an associated website, http://www.njep.org/usvjdvd, which includes a database of annotations of recent articles about sexual assault, a list of related web links, and ordering information.

Sex Traffic, written by Abi Morgan, Granada Television/Big Motion Pictures Production for Channel Four Television (UK) and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, 2004.

This fictionalised account of the real-life abuse of trafficking of women into prostitution was shown on ABC television in January this year. The writing is well-researched and informative on the complex political issues surrounding trafficking in women for sexual exploitation. It highlights the abusive nature of the practice, challenging discourses that seek to define trafficked women as 'economic migrants'. The narrative weaves the stories of two Moldovan sisters, Elena and Vara, who are trafficked through Romania, Serbia, Albania, Bosnia and Italy to London, 'betrayed along the way by pimps, police, and politicians. The reverberations of their story lead from big business in America to corruption amongst the international peace-keepers in Europe' (from the container jacket). The riveting account exposes the $7 billion global business of trafficking of women into prostitution, in this case throughout Europe and America, but revealing obvious parallels with Australasian trafficking.

New healing/resource book for survivors of male partner rape

Real rape, real pain: Help for women sexually assaulted by male partners, by Patricia Easteal and Louise McOrmond-Plummer

Many ACSSA subscribers will know of the work of both Patricia Easteal - author of Voices of the Survivors and editor of Balancing the Scales: Rape, Law Reform and Australian Culture - and Louise McOrmond-Plummer, an anti-rape activist of many years who also maintains the website, Aphrodite Wounded, for women raped by partners. This new book, Real Rape, Real Pain: Help for Women Sexually Assaulted by Male Partners will be the first to focus exclusively on women who have been sexually abused by husbands and partners. The authors note that because rape and sexual assault is still subject to public and judicial stereotypes of 'real' rape (that is strangers in alleyways), and because partner rape is not perceived to be as serious and traumatic as other kinds of rape, survivors of male partner rape often have difficulty finding information and getting support. The book draws on the experiences and voices of 30 survivors of partner rape from Australia, North America and the UK, and serves as a healing/resource book for survivors, supporters and professionals in the fields of counselling and advocacy internationally.

Spinifex Press to cease publishing new books

After 15 years of publishing an enormous range of feminist books, including many on violence against women, Melbourne-based Spinifex Press has announced it will cease publishing new books, and shift its focus to promoting and increasing the profile of books already published. Many ACSSA subscribers will know, as mentioned above, Patricia Easteal's Voices of the survivors, or be familiar with such titles as Enough, I started crying Monday, The idea of prostitution, The will to violence, Not for sale, and The women's circus: Leaping off the edge. These are just a few among the 170 books in the Spinifex catalogue, which includes 'books by Indigenous authors and on issues of importance to Indigenous women, books by women with disabilities and books that focus on the politics of disability, books on trade unions and books of importance to working class and poor women; and books by lesbians; across fiction, non-fiction and poetry' (from press release).

Spinifex's mission statement was from the beginning to publish controversial and innovative feminist books with an optimistic edge. Spinifex titles remain available through their distributors: in Australia and Asia, Macmillan; in Aotearoa/NZ, Addenda; in USA and Canada, Independent Publishers Group; and in UK, Gazelle.

Calls for research participants working in primary prevention

Susan Evans, a PhD candidate at the University of Western Sydney (UWS), would like to talk to workers in the field of primary prevention of child abuse and neglect, family/ domestic violence or sexual violence. She is researching how primary relationship violence prevention work is promoting non-violent, and 'good' relationships, and is keen to hear workers' experiences in the areas of policy development, and the processes of writing, facilitating or evaluating primary prevention programs relevant to violence in relationships. Susan says: 'perhaps some of you have experienced dilemmas in this aspect of prevention work, or have developed strategies you use when promoting 'good' relationships, that you wouldn't speak about in the public domain but might share in this research project'.

The project aims to 'further contribute to better work being done to prevent violence in relationships, and to the professional development of human service workers'. The project has ethics approval, and participants would receive an information sheet and questions before deciding if they want to be involved. Participation would remain confidential.

Attitudes towards drink spiking and its prevalence

A Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) postgraduate student, Bridget McPherson, is looking for volunteers aged from 18 to 35 to participate in a study on drink spiking, and is hoping that services may be able to assist in advertising the study to potential participants. She believes that the research 'holds the potential to provide vital data to agencies and the community itself' and will be of greatest benefit 'with a large number of participants, including people who have and haven't experienced drink spiking'. She would appreciate any assistance services can offer in placing flyers, or advertising through a newsletter or website.

Bridget has previously conducted research into the relationship between parental attachment and risktaking in young people, and spent time working with high-risk adolescents who had experienced abuse, mental illness and substance abuse. In this study, which has ethics approval, she is seeking to determine the prevalence of drink spiking in the community, as well as 'motivations and attitudes surrounding social activities including sexual activity and alcohol and substance abuse'.

Study participants are required to fill in a confidential questionnaire, which takes about 15 to 20 minutes.

Working with women victim/survivors of childhood sexual abuse

Kristina Birchmore, a PhD candidate at the University of South Australia (UniSA), is looking for voluntary participants who work with women as generalist counsellors, specialist childhood sexual abuse counsellors, or sex therapy counsellors. The study is for the purpose of examining the knowledge that professionals and survivors draw on to understand women's experiences of sexual intimacy when they have a history of childhood sexual abuse. The research seeks to compare the knowledge and interpretations of practitioners with those of women affected by childhood sexual abuse.

The UniSA Human Research Ethics Committee has approved the research. Participation would involve completing a confidential online survey, which would take 10 to 30 minutes.

 

ACSSA publications feedback

ACSSA welcomes any feedback that enables us to better resource the sector and provide accurate information. In this section, and with the writers' permission, we reprint feedback of a substantial nature on our publications, particularly corrections or additions to our published material, in the interest of keeping readers well-informed and up-to-date.

Feedback on Wrap 1, Adult Survivors of Childhood Sexual Assault

'I was reading the ACSSA Wrap 1 and just wanted to comment on the segment 'What is Childhood Sexual Assault?' My comment is that most jurisdictions now have legislation that provides for offences that include procurement and grooming of children. For example, South Australia legislation under the Criminal Law Consolidation Act provides for offences where a person 'communicates' with a child for the purpose of engaging a child in sexual activity or making a child amenable to sexual activity.

I point this out only because I think it is important that the current trends in regards to 'cyber crime' need to be included for the sake of victim awareness in recognising offending behaviour. After all, the Internet and all the technology that has emerged as a result is fifteen years old. There would be an abundance of people who may not have realised that they were the victims of sexual exploitation regardless of whether there was any physical aspect to the incident.'

Peter Rodney
Detective A/SSGT.
Sexual Crimes Investigation Branch
South Australia Police

Feedback on Aware 10

In the ACSSA Aware 10 Service Profile, contact information for Victims' Assistance Schemes in each state/territory was provided. It was mistakenly reported that the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) did not have a victim compensation program. The following information on the Victims of Crime Financial Assistance Scheme in the ACT was provided by ACT Policing's Victims of Crime Coordinator's Office:

Victims of violent crime who have sustained an injury are eligible to apply to the Magistrates Court for financial assistance under the Victims of Crime (Financial Assistance) Act 1983. The crime must have occurred in the ACT and must have been reported to police for a person to be eligible to apply. The sort of injuries that are covered under the scheme are in relation to physical or mental injuries, including mental shock or nervous shock or the aggravation of existing conditions, resulting from the crime. An injury may also consist of damage to things like glasses, or contact lenses, artificial limbs, hearing aids or dentures. If the crime results in an unwanted pregnancy, that can also be regarded as an 'injury'.

The sorts of financial assistance that can be awarded to a person are:

Victims of sexual offences and victims who have sustained an 'extremely serious injury' are also eligible to apply for special assistance as part of their application. Special assistance is a lump sum payment that provides some acknowledgement of the pain and suffering caused to the victim. An 'extremely serious injury' is defined as an injury consisting of the loss or impairment of a bodily function, disfigurement or a mental or emotional disturbance or disorder, where the injury is permanent, and is extremely serious and will always be extremely serious, and causes a great and permanent reduction in the victim's quality of life.

Where the primary victim has died as a result of the criminal conduct, a related victim (that is a close family member, a dependant or a person who had an intimate personal relationship with the primary victim, may be eligible to apply for financial assistance. People who are financially responsible for looking after a primary victim (for example a young child) may also apply to the Court for financial assistance for expenses reasonably incurred by them as a result of the injury, and loss of earnings they have suffered as a result of the injury.

Applications should be made to the Court within 12 months of the injury being sustained but there is provision for a person to apply to the Court for an extension of the time. The maximum total of financial assistance that can be awarded to a victim is $50,000. A free minor legal assistance service is available for victims of crime in the ACT. Any enquiries regarding the scheme can be made to our office on (02) 6217-4381/431.'

Victims of Crime Coordinator's Office
ACT Policing
Australian Federal Police

 

Sentencing trends for rape in Victoria

Sentencing trends for rape in Victoria, Sentencing Snapshot No. 7, Sentencing Advisory Council, December 2005.
Reviewed by Melanie Heenan

The Sentencing Advisory Council was established in Victoria in 2004 as an independent statutory body by the Sentencing (Amendment) Act 2003 to advise the Victorian Attorney-General on sentencing issues. Its main functions are to:

The first task of the Council, in response to a request by Victoria's Attorney General, the Honourable Rob Hulls MP, was to provide advice on the use of suspended sentences in Victoria and to consider possible reform options. This announcement came soon after there was public outcry over a convicted rapist being given a wholly suspended sentence by a County Court judge. A rally attended by several thousand people in Melbourne called for Parliament to abolish the use of suspended sentences for rape offences (The Age Newspaper, 15 December 2005), and to reassure the public that rape offenders were being treated seriously by the courts.

As part of a broader exercise, the Sentencing Council has been investigating the use of suspended sentences across particular categories of offences. Here, ACSSA considers the key findings reported in the Sentencing Snapshot that the Council prepared in relation to sentencing outcomes for the offence of rape. The report can be downloaded in full from the Sentencing Advisory Council's web site at: http://www.sentencingcouncil.vic.gov.au

The Sentencing Snapshot (hereafter 'the Snapshot') takes account of all sentencing outcomes for people sentenced for the principal offence of rape in the Supreme and County Court of Victoria between 1999/2000 and 2003/2004. This includes both people who pleaded guilty to rape, or were found guilty by a jury. In Victoria, the maximum penalty for rape is 25 years imprisonment.

Snapshot of sentencing 'types' for rape offences

The Council found that a total of 166 people had been sentenced for rape between 1999/2000 and 2003/20041. All 166 were male. Custodial sentences were given in a clear majority of cases over the fiveyear period. For example, in 2003/2004, 94 per cent of convicted rapists received a custodial sentence.

Imprisonment is the most likely type of custodial sentence that is handed down to a convicted rape offender. Just over three quarters (77 per cent) of the 166 men who were sentenced for rape received a sentence of immediate imprisonment. Just under a quarter of people sentenced for rape (23 per cent) received a sentence type other than a gaol term, including:

The average age of the 166 offenders who were sentenced for rape offences between 1999/2000 and 2003/2004 was 36 years.

1 Over this same five-year period, Victoria Police recorded over 4,500 reports of rape. See Victoria Police Crime Statistics Reports.

Suspended sentences for rape offenders

Over one in ten offenders sentenced for rape (11 per cent) was found to have received a wholly or partially suspended prison term during the five-year period under review. According to the Snapshot, the courts were ordering more partially, than wholly suspended prison terms for rape in 2003/2004, than they had been in the previous four years. Based on the limited nature of the data systems available to them, they were unable to say what factors might influence this fluctuation.

Rape sentencing - terms of imprisonment

The Snapshot distinguishes between two methods in describing sentence type. First, the Council refers to the principal sentence which is the sentence imposed in relation to the most serious individual offence of rape (that is, only the sentence for this offence will be considered). Second, they refer to the total effective sentence, which takes account of other offences related to the principal offence on which the offender may also have been convicted (for example, in addition to the offence of rape, an offender may be convicted of non-sexual assaults such as causing serious injury or unlawfully detaining a person; a judge will arrive at a sentence that reflects the totality of the seriousness of the offences).

The Council also provided figures on non-parole periods where the court imposes a period of imprisonment beyond which a person may become eligible for parole. The following figures provide the terms for offenders who received an immediate term of imprisonment during the five-year period under review, and for the most recent year examined by the Council.

Terms of imprisonment Average Most recent year examined - 2003/2004
Principal offence of rape 5 years, 1 month 5 years, 7 months
Total effective sentence where rape is principal offence 6 years, 10 months 7 years, 8 months
Non-parole period 4 years, 9 months 5 years, 5 months

It is important to note that the Snapshot exclusively reports the means, or average, terms of imprisonment, without also reporting the medians, that is: the mid-point or 50th percentile. The median would have been particularly helpful in this context because it takes account of the extremes at either end of the sentencing spectrum, and is a better reflection of the most common outcome2. For example, where a convicted serial rapist may attract a total effective sentence of some 20 years or longer, an offender who is found guilty of raping an acquaintance may receive a total effective sentence of 4 years. Examining the median terms alongside the average would have therefore helped to moderate this range and provide figures that don't over-inflate, or under-state, the nature and status of the majority of sentencing outcomes where a prison term is set.

In 1997, sentencing figures reported by researchers undertaking an evaluation of Victoria's law reform activity following the introduction of changes to rape laws and procedures, demonstrated this difference (Heenan & McKelvie, 1997). The authors reported both the average and median sentences given to 74 offenders who had pleaded guilty or been found guilty of a rape offence during their 18-month study period, between January 1992 and June 1993. The median terms were considerably lower than the means for both the total effective sentence and the non-parole periods.

For offenders who had pleaded guilty to rape, the average (mean) total effective sentence was 6 years and 8 months with a non-parole period of 5 years. The corresponding median figures for the total effective sentence given to offenders who had pleaded guilty was 5 years with a non-parole period of 3 years and 6 months (Heenan & McKelvie, 1997, pp. 242-243). However, it is also possible that, with a different sample of cases, or that since that time, there might be a closer association between the mean and median terms set. Unpublished research by the Council reveals a closer association between the mean and the median in recent years.

2 Taking house prices as an illustrative example: the median price of houses in a particular location is usually reported, rather than the mean. As one expensive house sale can 'artificially' push up the mean price, medians are considered a better reflection of the price of a typical house. The same dynamic is in operation when examining sentencing means.

What stage is the reference on suspended sentences at now?

Quite apart from the sentencing trends for rape reported in this Sentencing Snapshot, the Council has looked broadly at the issue of suspended sentences across all offence categories. Their Preliminary information paper on suspended sentences was published in March 2005, with a Discussion Paper published soon after in April 2005 (used to inform community debate and aid consultations about the role of suspended sentences in Victoria). The Council's proposals have been tabled in their Suspended sentences: Interim report of October 2005, and include 46 recommendations aimed at simplifying and modernising sentencing orders in Victoria. One of the key recommendations in this report is to remove the power of the court to wholly or partially suspend a prison sentence. The Interim report also recommends introducing sentencing options that will allow courts to issue new orders, particularly to young offenders aged between 18 and 25 years that do not include terms of imprisonment.

The Victorian Attorney-General is expecting the Council's Final report on this subject to be submitted by the end of 2006.

In the coming year, the Council intends to release similar snapshots on sexual offences other than rape.

The Sentencing Snapshot, and other reports referred to in this review, can be downloaded in full from the Sentencing Advisory Council's website at: http://www.sentencingcouncil.vic.gov.au

The Research Collection page of the ACSSA website also contains links to recently released reports relevant to sexual assault : http://www.aifs.gov.au/acssa/research/docsmenu.html

Reference

Heenan, M & McKelvie, H (1997). The Crimes (Rape) Act 1991: An evaluation report, Rape Law Reform Evaluation Project, Report No. 2. Melbourne, Victoria: Attorney-General's Legislation and Policy Branch, Department of Justice.

 

Rape for the 'comfort' of soldiers

Still waiting after 60 years: Justice for survivors of Japan's military sexual slavery system, report by Amnesty International, December 2005, London.
Reviewed by Lara Fergus

We just had to get on with our lives as if nothing had happened, that was really hard because for us the war never ended because the shame continued, we were always afraid someone might find out, we carried this horrific shame. I really couldn't do anything about it, you carry all the shame, you feel dirty, you feel sorry, you feel different, you feel unworthy, they took away my youth, my possessions, my dignity. It is so amazing that after the war, men came back with all these medals on their chest and all women came back with were these scars. (Jan Ruff O'Hearne, who was repeatedly raped over a period of three months in an Indonesian 'comfort station' during World War Two, in an interview with Amnesty International Australia, June 2005)

Late last year Amnesty International released the report, Still waiting after 60 years: Justice for survivors of Japan's military sexual slavery system, on the systematic sexual violence suffered by the euphemisticallytermed 'comfort women'. As noted in the report, 'comfort women' is a translation from the Japanese 'jugun ianfu', and, though widely used, is objectionable in its minimisation of the extreme human rights violations committed. The women and girls were abducted, forced, coerced or deceived into sexual slavery by the Japanese Imperial Army from around 1932 to the end of World War II. They were transported, often internationally, into 'comfort stations' where they were raped, and often beaten, by up to 50 soldiers a day over several years. Amnesty estimates that up to 200,000 women and girls were enslaved in this way, though the exact number will never be known - women from Korea, Timor Leste, Indonesia, the Philippines, China, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Burma and many of the Pacific Islands.

Though examples of systemised sexual violence against women by soldiers are many, Amnesty highlights the institutionalised sexual slavery used by the Japanese Imperial Army during World War Two in this report as one of the most compelling examples. It constituted the 'legalised military rape of subject women on a scale - and over a period of time - previously unknown in history' (Hicks, 1995 p.xv). The report begins with information from a variety of sources about the history, extent and nature of this 'widespread and systematic' practice. It also includes many testimonies from survivors, which, though harrowing, are necessary reading for those who believe women's experiences must inform our theory and practice around sexual violence. Finally, a large part of the report is devoted to a thorough legal analysis of the responsibility, under international and national law, of the Japanese Government to provide reparation, with Amnesty clearly targeting the current government to implement specific changes. While this latter analysis is too detailed to be adequately reviewed here, below is an overview of the parts of the report dealing with the history and nature of the 'comfort women' system, drawing parallels with contemporary manifestations of sexual slavery and military sexual assault.

According to the Amnesty report, the first military 'comfort station' was probably that established in Shanghai in 1932 (Yoshimi, 2000), and 'full-scale institutionalisation of such facilities for sexual slavery appears to have begun after 1937' (Amnesty International, 2005 p.6). This institutionalisation developed alongside Japanese colonisation and military expansion across the region. Attempted justifications for the system included: 'to reduce the number of rapes in areas where the army was based; prevent sexually transmitted diseases; counter the threat of espionage and [...] improve soldiers' morale and relieve them of 'combat stress' ' (Amnesty International, 2005 p.7, citing Boling, 1994-5; and Hicks, 1995). Reports and regulations - on such elements as inspections of the facilities, venereal examinations and schedules for the use of the 'comfort stations' by officers or lower ranking soldiers - testify to the official sanctioning of the system.

Lee Ok-sun, at the House of Sharing, South Korea. (C) Paula Allen / Amnesty International Through 'recruitment' techniques almost indistinguishable from those used by traffickers today, the Japanese military 'preyed on [the] women and girls who because of age, poverty, class, family status, education, nationality or ethnicity were most susceptible to being deceived and trapped into the sexual slavery system' (Amnesty International, 2005 p.8). For example, particularly in Korea, 'poor young girls were led to believe they would be earning good wages in factory work or similar employment [and] most were motivated by the need to support their families' (Amnesty International, 2005 p.9). The vast majority of women enslaved were young, aged between 12 and 20, and most came from poor rural backgrounds. Where the above 'recruitment measures' of coercion and deception were inadequate, the Japanese military did not hesitate to use extreme violence and outright abduction, either of individual girls or women, or in large-scale 'slave raids'.

Though some women and girls 'were forced into sexual servitude near their homes, many were transported long distances to wherever Japanese soldiers were based' (Amnesty International, 2005 p.9). Sim Dal-yun, from Korea, testifies in the report:

I was taken by ship, I think to Taiwan. There were many girls on the ship. [...] I was battered and hit so harshly that sometimes I fainted, once a soldier cut my thigh with a knife. My mental state was so unstable, I was like a dead body, I just lay there; soldiers would still come in and rape me. I was so young, I was in complete shock (quoted in Amnesty International, 2005 p.9).

Upon arrival at a 'comfort station', the women and girls were kept detained, with their movements closely monitored and restricted. Most women were not allowed to leave the military camps in which the 'comfort stations' were situated, which were surrounded by barbed wire making escape impossible. Even if they were allowed to leave the camp, they found themselves in the middle of a war zone - and often in a foreign country with no money or ability to speak the local language - meaning they had nowhere to go. Those who managed to escape were highly vulnerable to being caught, and severely punished with physical and sexual violence when they were.

While in the 'comfort stations', the women and girls had to endure repeated rape and beatings. Some were forced to labour during the day and then raped at night. The report details the level of abuse they suffered:

Some [were] forced to 'serve' 50 soldiers a day. Women have testified that their genitals were swollen and they experienced constant bleeding. They could not sit, sleep or urinate without pain. Soldiers would wait in line and rape the women one after the other, some were gang raped. Others were kept as the personal sex slaves of individual officers (quoted in Amnesty International, 2005 p.11).

As a result of the almost universally harsh conditions and extreme violence, the health of the women and girls deteriorated, and many died as a result of disease, malnutrition, exhaustion and ill-treatment. The Japanese military feared the spread of sexually transmitted diseases, which was one stated reason for the enslavement of such young, sexually-inexperienced girls. While forced health checks were carried out by army doctors, these were limited to preventing the spread of such diseases. The women and girls were denied medical attention for their other injuries, such as 'cigarette burns, bayonet stabs and other forms of torture and ill-treatment inflicted on them' (Amnesty International, 2005, p.12). Many were killed or committed suicide during their enslavement.

The report notes that survivors faced additional trauma at the end of the war, when:

Some were summarily killed, some died in combat at the frontlines, while others were simply left stranded. Survivors faced severe hardship whilst attempting to make their way home, some died in transit. There are accounts of women who assimilated into the countries they were taken to. Some survivors returned to their home countries but rarely to their home towns. On return, the women kept silent about what happened to them. [...] The location of shame upon the violated woman is a thread that links the experiences of 'comfort women' to other victims of sexual abuse in war, peace, at home and elsewhere across the world (quoted in Amnesty International, 2005 p.13).

The survivors are now in their seventies and eighties. Many have died without hearing an apology on behalf of the Japanese government or seeing justice served on the perpetrators. The impact and trauma of the abuse has continued throughout their lives. Hardly any of the survivors interviewed for the Amnesty report had been able to have children, as a result of their internal injuries or sexually transmitted disease. The emotional torment and psychological damage is evidenced in the testimonies of many of the survivors, who describe lives of isolation and solitude, of feeling 'different from other women', of 'hiding', of being scared. One survivor, Kang Soon-ae, who was abducted when she was 13 years-old, spoke of the long-term emotional effects of the abuse:

I thought about killing myself often ... I feel tired, really tired; nobody knows my pain. I can smell the men, I hate men. The Japanese government should see me, realise what they did. The have to admit what they create (quoted in Amnesty International, 2005 p.14).

In addition to this, the survivors of the sexual slavery system, like survivors of trafficking and other forms of sexual abuse, spoke of being afraid to disclose or report what had happened to them because of consequences ranging from disbelief, rejection and alienation, to being declared unfit for marriage and suffering the resulting economic and social repercussions. In 1991, a Korean survivor, Kim Hak-soon, became the first to speak publicly about her experience. The Amnesty report notes that:

Aged 74, her decision was based on having no living relatives to be ashamed of her past. She in turn inspired many other women, including Lola Rosa Hensen who spoke on television and radio in the Philippines in 1992 urging survivors not to feel ashamed but come forward and demand justice. These remarkable women gave strength and courage to many others, becoming champions of justice for all victims of Japanese military sexual slavery (Amnesty International, 2005 p.17).

Many of the survivors now organise demonstrations and conferences, and have addressed United Nations (UN) bodies and pursued litigation in Japan and the United States. In the face of ongoing impunity for perpetrators of the abuse, and lack of redress to the survivors, women's rights activists came together in 2000 for the Women's International War Crimes Tribunal on Japan's Military Sexual Slavery. Though a non-judicial tribunal, it gave the opportunity for survivors to testify in a formal environment and made recommendations based on legal findings.

The recommendations issuing from the tribunal, and the analysis in the Amnesty report of Japan's obligations under national and international law, are too detailed to be reproduced here. In summary, however, Amnesty has reflected the demands of survivors in calling on the Japanese government to:

Demonstration with Malaya Lolas (Freedom Grandmothers), Filipina survivors of Japan's WWII military sexual slavery system, in front of the Japanese embassy inManila. (C) Paula Allen / Amnesty International. The Amnesty report also draws links with wider military sexual violence, noting that rape, mutilation and murder of women and girls are common tactics in war. Many theorists have examined the particular history of militarisation with regard to sexual violence and prostitution. Sheila Jeffreys, for instance, situates the massive growth in the prostitution industries of Saigon, Thailand and the Philippines as a direct result of large United States (US) military presences (Jeffreys, 1997, citing Enloe, 1983; Sturdevant & Stoltzfus, 1992). Robert Jensen goes further to draw links between prostitution/pornography and war, saying they 'both depend for their success on the process of rendering human beings less-than-fully-human so they can be hurt' (Jensen, 2005, p.31). He quotes one investigative journalist reporting during the 1991 Gulf War that US pilots watched pornographic movies before flying missions, apparently to get them 'pumped up' to drop bombs (Kurtz, 1991, quoted in Jensen 2005).

A recent report by Human Rights Watch notes that during the 1992- 5 conflict in the former Yugoslavia, thousands of women were raped by Bosnian, Serb and Yugoslav armed forces (Human Rights Watch, 2002). Such sexual violence was not only opportunistic but systematic, taking place in rape camps and detention centres scattered throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina. The report goes on to point out that:

With the signing of the Dayton Peace Agreement in December 1995, violence against women and girls in Bosnia and Herzegovina did not cease. The grim sexual slavery of the war years has been followed by the trafficking of women and girls for forced prostitution (Human Rights Watch, 2002, p.4).

The latest report by the UN Special Rapporteur on Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, draws specific links between military deployment and sexual exploitation. Respondents to her questionnaire confirmed that the influx of military personnel, peacekeepers and even employees of international organisations or international aid workers, into 'a situation of armed conflict or political instability, often brings about a demand for services deriving from sexual exploitation [which] can lead to an increase of trafficking. Human rights advocates also provided information on the role of United Nations peacekeeping troops in creating a demand for prostitution and trafficking in post-conflict situations' (Huda, 2006, p.18).

Some countries and organisations have taken action to reduce such exploitation, with the UN, the US and Norway banning their military personnel from using prostituted persons. In addition, 'forty-six nations of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) have agreed to prohibit their military personnel from engaging in the use of prostituted women who are known to be controlled by traffickers, and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has adopted a code of conduct for all mission members in Bosnia and Herzegovina that prohibits mission members from promoting or facilitating prostitution and trafficking in persons' (Huda, 2006, p.18).

Despite this increased awareness of the abuses women suffer in wartime - and other developments such as the recognition of rape as a war crime and crime against humanity under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court - there remains widespread impunity for such crimes, with states failing to investigate, perpetrators left unpunished, and victims denied reparation. Many of the survivors of the 'comfort women' system are also involved in campaigning to end wider violence against women across the world. Survivor Lola Julia Porras is quoted in the report as saying:

Women are being raped now; they are being killed. [...] I spoke in the former Yugoslavia to women who themselves had been raped in the conflict, after I spoke they came up to me, they were crying, they said they themselves were not ready to speak about what happened to them but that I had given them courage and hope (quoted in Amnesty International, 2005 p.18).

References

Amnesty International (2005). Still waiting after 60 years: Justice for survivors of Japan's military sexual slavery system. London: Amnesty International.

Amnesty International Australia (2006). Call for justice, Brief for the 'Stop Violence Against Women' campaign. Sydney, Australia: Amnesty International.

Boling, D. (1994-5). Mass rape, enforced prostitution, and the Japanese imperial army: Japan eschews international legal responsibility? Colombia Journal of Transnational Law, 32, 533-590.

Enloe, C. (1983). Does khaki become you? The militarisation of women's lives, London: Pluto Press.

Hicks, G. (1995). The comfort women: Sex slaves of the Japanese imperial army, London: Souvenir Press.

Human Rights Watch (2002). Hopes betrayed: Trafficking of women and girls to post-conflict Bosnia and Herzegovina for forced prostitution. New York: Human Rights Watch. Retrieved month day, year, from http://www.hrw.org/reports/2002/bosnia

Jeffreys, S. (1997). The idea of prostitution. North Melbourne: Spinifex Press.

Jensen, R. (2004). Blow bangs and vluster Bombs: the Cruelty of Men and Americans. In R. Whisnant and C. Stark (Eds), Not for sale: Feminists resisting prostitution and pornography, North Melbourne: Spinifex Press.

Kurtz, Howard (1991, January 26). Correspondents chafe over curbs on news: Rules meant to protect troops, officials say. The Washington Post, p. A17.

Sturdevant, S.P. & Stoltzfus, B. (1992). Let the good times roll: Prostitution and the US military in Asia. New York: New Press.

Yoshimi, Y. (2000). Comfort women: Sexual slavery in the Japanese military during World War II, translated by Suzanne O'Brien. New York: Columbia University Press.

On 9 August 2006, Amnesty International will be holding an international day of action, calling for justice for the survivors of Japan's military sexual slavery system. The report, Still waiting after 60 years, is available on the Amnesty International website at: http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGASA220122005

The What's New page of the ACSSA website also contains regular updates and links to this and other recently-released reports relevant to sexual assault: http://www.aifs.gov.au/acssa/whatsnew.html.

Reports are later archived in our Research Collection: http://www.aifs.gov.au/acssa/research/docsmenu.html

 

Four new resources for those working with survivors of child sexual abuse
Anne van Loon

Four new resources have been produced as outputs of a two-year capacity building participatory action research project funded by Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation. We worked with two groups of women survivors of childhood sexual abuse and two groups of service providers to this client group. The first resource is a work book titled Reclaiming myself after child sexual abuse (van Loon and Kralik, 2005). It is aimed at supporting survivors dealing with the impacts of abuse/assault and the subsequent life issues the women face. The second resource is another 200 page book Facilitating transition after child sexual abuse (van Loon, 2005). It is aimed at service providers and group facilitators working with this client group. The third resource is the final report of the research project which provides an extensive literature review and recommendations for service provision proposed by participants (van Loon & Kralik, 2005). It will be useful to inform policy and planning for governments and health and social service agencies. The final resource is a poster that describes the transition process through life's disruptions. This poster has received accolades in every forum in which it has been presented, because it resonates with people, helping them make sense of disruptive life changes (van Loon & Kralik, 2005). All four resources are available for free electronic downloading from the Royal District Nursing Service (RDNS) Research Unit website http://www.rdns.org.au and the Catherine House website http://www.catherinehouse.org.au.

Why we commenced this project

There is a plethora of research demonstrating people who have experienced childhood sexual abuse are at increased risk of mental illness, and drug, alcohol and gambling addictions. These issues are directly linked to this group being over-represented in the homeless population (Anderson & Chiocchio, 1997). Catherine House, an inner-city supported accommodation provider, state that over 90 per cent of the women seeking emergency accommodation have experienced sexual abuse in childhood. While these women were receiving support for their addictions and mental health needs, the underlying cause was not being adequately addressed. They teamed up with the RDNS Research Unit to work with homeless women to find ways to help them to move forward from such adverse childhood experiences. The RDNS Research Unit has expertise in researching with people regarding life, health and social transitions. They are particularly interested in working with people who are experiencing chronic illness and/or social disadvantage.

The team wanted to locate a way to build the personal capacity of these women by helping them work through their past pain so they may reframe their current responses to life's problems. The aim was to facilitate the women's transition toward independence and a life where drugs, alcohol and gambling were less likely responses, because these behaviours were contributing to the women's homelessness. Additionally, the team wanted those working with this client group to increase their awareness and sensitivity of the women's specific needs.

The team received a grant from the Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation and together they commenced working with two groups of women survivors of childhood sexual abuse (n=16) and two groups of service providers (n=24) to work out a process that could help these women survivors to create change in their lives. The groups allowed the women to find their voices about deep and painful life stories that had been carried in silence for many years, yet the disrupting influence of that life story had dominated most of the women's life choices.

The process the team used and the content of what the groups discussed are presented in the two books that were launched in November 2005.

The research process

We used participatory action research because we wanted to do more than obtain information (Banks-Wallace, 1998; Holstein & Gubrium, 2000; Aranda, 2001; Reason & Bradbury, 2001; Koch, 2005; Koch, Mann et al., 2005). We worked with the women childhood sexual abuse survivors for two to three hours each fortnight for 18 months to generate the data together. All interactions were taped and transcribed verbatim and analysed and returned to the women by post for their considered action. The books were formulated as a direct response to the women's request for an accessible 'self-help' workbook. The women participated in every aspect of the research process. The team did not dictate the content of what was to be discussed at each meeting, rather the women explored current issues in their lives using a simple process called 'Look, Think, Act'.

In this process the women work back from the present to see how situations have been managed in the past and what effects those responses have had on the woman's life. The process focuses on locating issues or problems that people wanted to change. The approach provided women with a safe space and regular time to work through situations to develop a clearer understanding of how their current behaviours and responses might be linked to thoughts, feelings and attitudes that they had learned, many of which were grounded in their experiences of sexual abuse in childhood. We located the strengths and wisdom each woman brought to her current situation, which was an empowering process. At the end of the project the women benefited from their participation and we as researchers had an authentic product that could be used by other organisations to benefit survivors of childhood sexual abuse and possibly survivors of other forms of abuse.

The 'Look, Think and Act' process

This process first coined by Stringer (Stringer 1999; Stringer & Genet 2004), is a simple three-step method that can be used by any person. It's called 'Look Think Act':

Look This step basically involves working out 'What is going on?'

Think This step addresses the questions 'What do I want to do about it?' and 'What can I feasibly do right now that will provide me with the best outcome now?'

Act This step encourages each woman to take some action toward making her plans happen. We suggest she takes the 'easiest' steps that are likely to give her the best results. However, this is actually difficult because the woman must have the courage to step out of an identity that is 'victim' oriented. In this state the woman believes she is in a powerless position where everything happens to her and she has no options at her disposal. With encouragement we invite her to consider she has enough power to start to change her situation and reclaim the territory of her own life.

The women experienced validation in sharing their life experiences and found they had much in common. In speaking about the situation the women made sense of aspects of their life story. Their past disruption and the ensuing chaos has had them feeling like 'flotsam and jetsam in the sea of life', as one participant put it, but in the narrative work they started to find anchor points that reflected stronger and more able women than they believed they were. This helped them work out who they were and where they were going, so they could decide how they wanted to live and create change accordingly. As their future plans unfolded, hope was rekindled and the woman's motivation to work at creating change grew. They understood how past and present were connected and became able to separate themselves from the things that had been toxic to their wellbeing. They could see they were more than the sum of their past experiences and this ignited the hope required to create change.

This was not a quick fix process. It takes dedicated time to help a woman face her pain, feel her pain, name it, grieve her losses and then work out how she wants to live and be in the world now. Using the process takes practice and the women need encouragement to work with it until it becomes more second nature. Over time their own progress provides the motivation they require to keep moving forward with their life. The process, however, is accessible to everyone. Service providers and volunteer community groups can use it with good effect, providing they create a safe group within which to work and have people committed to working with the women for around 12 months.

The research outputs

Along with several published papers (van Loon, 2004; van Loon et al., 2004), the first book (~200 pages) is aimed at women survivors of childhood sexual abuse and can be used in conjunction with a support group, or a worker with whom the woman is comfortable. The book contents came from our group work which was led by issues the women were encountering. They said the book should cover the impacts of childhood sexual abuse and work with the reader on various common issues, emotions and feelings that may be linked to childhood sexual abuse. Through exploring these issues the women are assisted to separate themselves from the abuse experiences and move toward reclaiming an independent identity with which they are comfortable. The book does not claim to be an authoritative text that guarantees healing. It provides a process that we know to be empowering and helpful, about issues that we know are common struggles.

The second book is aimed at service providers. It gives a background to the problem of childhood sexual abuse with an extensive review of the literature necessary for understanding the issues. It discusses important factors in creating a therapeutic relationship with this client group. It gives a brief overview of how to create the space for participation in a group that is handling such sensitive issues and helps service providers to understand how to use the 'Look, Think and Act' process to facilitate transition.

Five hundred hard copies of each book were distributed free to key services in South Australia who work with this client population. The book is also available for free downloading from the Royal District Nursing Service Research Unit website http://www.rdns.org.au, and the Catherine House Inc. website http://www.catherinehouse.org.au so the package is accessible for everyone in the community to use.

More research is planned

The women in this study wanted to hear the stories of ordinary women who had experienced childhood sexual abuse, who had been able to move on and reclaim their lives in order to live a life that they were content with. The RDNS research team received a small grant from Community Benefit SA and are interviewing 12 women to obtain narratives of hope by locating in these stories the strategies, attitudes and processes the women used to transition into a future of their choosing.

The RDNS Research Unit can offer their expertise to partner with other service providers to use this research process with other vulnerable client groups, in order to improve health and social service provision. Additionally, the RDNS Foundation gratefully receives donations to support their research program that seeks to promote health and prevent illness for marginalised groups within our community. More information can be obtained by phoning (08) 8206 0111 or emailing researchunit@rdns.org.au. Similarly, Catherine House continues its excellent support to vulnerable women who find themselves homeless for a variety of reasons, and their work can be supported by phoning (08) 8232 2282 or emailing director@catherinehouse.org.au.

The poster can be downloaded from the Royal District Nursing Service (RDNS) Research Unit website at: http://www.rdns.org.au/research_unit/documents/RDNS_transition_poster.pdf and the research report (and workbooks) at: http://www.rdns.org.au/research_unit/research_projects.shtml

All four resources are available for free electronic downloading. The two work books, Reclaiming myself after child sexual abuse, and Facilitating transition after child sexual abuse are online at the Catherine House website at: http://www.catherinehouse.org.au/Publications/tabid/62/Default.aspx

References

Anderson, C. and K. Chiocchio (1997). The interface of homelessness, addictions and mental illness in the lives of trauma survivors. In M. Harris & C. Landis (Eds) Sexual abuse in the lives of women diagnosed with serious mental illness: New directions in therapeutic interventions (pp. 21-37). Amsterdam: Harwood Academic Publishers.

Aranda, S. (2001). From individual to groups: use of narratives in a participatory research process. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 33(6): 791-797.

Banks-Wallace, J. (1998). Emancipatory potential of storytelling in a group. IMAGE: Journal of Nursing Scholarship, 30(1), pp. 7-21.

Holstein, J. & Gubrium, J. (2000). The self we live by: Narrative identity in a postmodern world. New York, Oxford University Press.

Koch, T., Mann, S., Kralik, D., & Van Loon, A.M. (2005). Look, think and act cycles in participatory action research. Journal of Research in Nursing, 10(3), pp. 261-278.

Reason, P. & Bradbury, H. (2001). Handbook of action research: Participative inquiry & practice. London, UK, Sage Publications.

Stringer, E. & Genet, W. J. (2004). Action research in health, New Jersey USA, Pearson Education Inc.

Stringer, E. T. (1999). Action research (2nd edition). California, Sage Publications.

Van Loon, A. M. (2004). The Nurse's role in the caring encounter with women survivor's of child sexual abuse. The Pursuit of Excellence, Issue No. 27.

Van Loon, A. M., Koch, T., & Kralik, D (2004). Care for female survivors of child sexual abuse in emergency departments. Accident and Emergency Nursing Journal, 12, pp. 208-214.

Van Loon, A. M. & Kralik, D. (2005). Promoting capacity with homeless women survivors of child sexual abuse misusing alcohol, drugs or gambling. Adelaide: Royal District Nursing Service Foundation Research Unit, Catherine House Inc, Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation.

Van Loon, A. M. & Kralik, D. (2005). Reclaiming myself after child sexual abuse, Adelaide, Royal District Nursing Service Foundation Research Unit, Catherine House Inc, Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation.

Van Loon, A. M. & Kralik, D. (2005). Transition: moving through life's adverse disruptions, Adelaide, Royal District Nursing Service Foundation Research Unit, Catherine House Inc, University of South Australia, Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation.

Van Loon. A.M. & Kralik, D (2005). Facilitating transition after child sexual abuse, Adelaide, Royal District Nursing Service Foundation Research Unit, Catherine House Inc, Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation.

 

Safe at work?
Safe at work? Women's experience of violence in the workplace, by the Union Research Centre Of Technology (URCOT) at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT), and Working Women's Health, Melbourne 2005. Reviewed by Jennie Child

Safe at work? Women's experience of violence in the workplace (hereafter 'Safe at work?'), a report by the Union Research Centre Of Technology (URCOT) and Working Women's Health, presents findings from a research project conducted to identify the incidence, prevalence and impact of violence against women in Victorian workplaces. The project was overseen by the Victorian Statewide Steering Committee to Reduce Violence Against Women in the Workplace, which was established under the Victorian Government's Women's Safety Strategy and chaired by the Victorian Office of Women's Policy. The Steering Committee includes representatives from government and non-government organisations and aims to improve prevention of, and responses to, violence against women occurring in the workplace setting, including workplace violence, bullying and sexual harassment.

The starting point for the Safe at work? research project was to undertake a gender analysis of workplace violence after a review of relevant literature revealed that previous studies tended to 'deal with workplace violence in a non-gendered way' (p.5). In this sense, the research recognised 'the importance of gender and its relationship with race, ethnicity, culture, class, age, sexuality, disability, or other status to understand women's experience' (p.6). Consequently, the research analyses how gender, race, class, sexuality and power impact on violence in the workplace. The study adopted a broad definition of workplace violence encompassing physical and non-physical forms of violence occurring inside or outside the workplace setting, such as: 'physical assault; threatening behaviour; bullying; verbal abuse and various forms of harassment' (p14). The violence could be perpetrated by a colleague, supervisor, client, customer, family member or member of the public.

The study used a number of research methods to ensure a diverse range of women's experiences were taken into account, including: a literature review; a telephone survey of 1,000 Victorian women (with 977 valid responses); focus group discussions with Indigenous women, lesbian and immigrant women; and interviews and focus groups with managers and women from four selected industries (health, manufacturing, education and retail/hospitality).

Given the Australian and international literature available on workplace violence, the Safe at work? research project set out to address the following questions:

  1. What is the type and frequency of violence in the workplace against women in general and against particular groups of women?
  2. How does the experience of workplace violence impact on women, including its impact on their lives outside of the workplace?
  3. What are the cultural and structural characteristics of sectors and workplaces where there is reported violence against women?
  4. What has supported or hindered women from reporting the violence, and receiving responses appropriate to their needs?
  5. What are the economic and social costs of workplace violence?

The findings from the literature review, telephone survey and focus groups demonstrated that violence in the workplace affects women of all ages and across industries and occupations. Women experienced significant levels of workplace violence, which was often normalised and legitimated, particularly where violence against women was embedded in the organisation's culture. Further, gender inequality in workplaces, as in society, led to women being engaged in positions of vulnerability or insecure employment.

Findings from the telephone survey

The survey findings demonstrated that violence against women in Victorian workplaces is significant, with 607 women (62.1 per cent) experiencing some form of violence at work in the last five years, including: being sworn at or shouted at; hostile behaviours; being intimidated or threatened; bullying; victimisation; physical attacks; racial or sexual harassment; robbery; wounding or battering; stalking; and rape. Of those who experienced violence in the last 12 months, 96 per cent said it had occurred on multiple occasions. Men were more likely to perpetrate violence against women in the workplace (69 per cent), although 31 per cent of the perpetrators were women. Almost 50 per cent of women surveyed (n=484) reported witnessing violence directed towards others in the workplace. Further, the survey results suggested that violence against women in the workplace was often normalised and that women found it difficult to label their experiences of violence. Although 69 per cent of women had experienced or witnessed the behaviours listed above, only 39 per cent of women surveyed initially identified what they had experienced or witnessed as 'violence'. The findings illustrated that supervisors and colleagues perpetrate more violence against women in the workplace than people 'external' to organisations (that is clients, customers, students and patients). In 40 per cent of 'internal' workplace violence, managers, supervisors or business owners perpetrated the violence, and in 60 per cent of cases the perpetrator was another worker.

Findings from the focus groups

In addition to the telephone survey, focus group discussions were held to further investigate experiences of violence for specific groups of women (immigrant women, Indigenous women and lesbians).

The findings demonstrated that immigrant women experienced unique factors, which increased their vulnerability to violence in the workplace. Immigrant women were over-represented in low paid and low status occupations, experienced language barriers that impeded their access to services and information, and were often unfamiliar with their rights. Immigrant women reported that the violence they experienced was mostly perpetrated by supervisors or managers and often occurred in discriminatory environments. Immigrant women also reported experiencing racialised violence and reported feeling alone, isolated and vulnerable in the workplace.

Indigenous women experienced violence in 'a broader context of racism and disadvantage in access to work and to career advancement' (p.8). In this sense, in non-Indigenous organisations, women experienced violence as an extension of being treated as 'second class' people while in Indigenous community organisations, the violence which occurred reflected broader family and community structures. That is, the authors say, violence experienced by women in Indigenous community organisations related to the power individuals held because of their family backgrounds and the way in which workplace violence was perceived and dealt with was affected by the family-based structure and close-knit nature of Indigenous communities. High levels of violence in some Indigenous communities also impacted on perceptions of workplace violence. Younger women faced unique difficulties in addressing violence as it may involve confronting an 'elder' who holds considerable power in the community or workplace.

Lesbians spoke of feeling alienated and different from managers and colleagues, battled ignorance about their communities and themselves and reported regularly experiencing discrimination and harassment because they were lesbians. 'One of the biggest concerns for lesbians was the extent to which they felt able to be open about their sexuality without being afraid of adverse consequences' (p.8). Violence experienced by lesbians was often subtle and 'difficult to prove' with one study participant reporting that 'it's the indirect stuff that makes you think that you are going insane' (p.32).

Findings from the industry case studies

The research included four industry studies: the health industry, the education industry, the manufacturing sector, and the retail/hospitality industry. The health and education industries were chosen because they were female-dominated industries. Within the health industry, women experienced internal workplace violence, which resulted in significant productivity losses. These findings were similar to previous studies, which illustrate that internal workplace violence is most common in organisations with hierachical structures. The findings from this study also suggest that non-physical violence may be widespread and unchecked in the health industry and that internal violence (perpetrated by colleagues and managers) has a greater impact than external violence (perpetrated by non-employees). These hierarchical structures were also evident in the education industry with women often being engaged in the least powerful positions and experiencing a 'culture of violence where violent behaviour [was] perpetrated and modelled 'from the top down'' (p.37). Women also experienced employment insecurity resulting in reluctance to report workplace violence. The study found that fear of job loss was heightened in areas with limited job markets (that is regional communities). Further, the negative impact of external workplace violence from parents and students (that is distress and injury) was worsened if managers failed to respond appropriately.

Women working in the manufacturing sector on both the factory floor and in professional roles experienced male-dominated work environments where violence was normalised and entrenched. Women in this industry often felt they had to tolerate a certain level of violence and sometimes felt fearful and threatened, particularly if employed in vulnerable positions.

Women in small retail businesses were often unaware of action they could take, other than leaving their job, if the business owner was the perpetrator of violence. Women in the retail and hospitality industries also experienced violence ('being treated badly') from members of the public on regular basis. The study found that some small organisations did not have the processes in place to adequately address this.

The impacts and costs of workplace violence

The findings illustrate that workplace violence adversely affects women in many ways and impacts on individuals, their families, communities and workplaces. In the telephone survey four out of five women (79 per cent) who experienced violence reported their enjoyment of the job was affected 'a lot' or 'somewhat'. Women also spoke of developing psychological disorders, leaving their jobs, developing substance abuse problems or experiencing relationship breakdowns. Further, 3.5 per cent of women surveyed made WorkCover claims and more than one in ten (11 per cent) took sick leave as a result of workplace violence.

Workplace violence also resulted in costs to organisations including: reduced efficiency, staff turnover, absenteeism, early retirement costs, counselling program costs, mediation or grievance proceedings, anti-discrimination action, and applications to the Australian Industrial Relations Commission. Costs to the community included health care costs or costs associated with family breakdown and unemployment.

Women's responses to workplace violence

Three out of five women who reported experiencing violence in the telephone survey had reported it to a manager or a person in a position of authority. Reasons for not reporting violence in the workplace included: women feared losing their jobs; violence was 'normalised' in the workplace and seen as unavoidable; women did not know what could be done about it; some women feared the reporting process would be traumatic; women believed that violence was condoned by managers resulting in lack of faith in the system; and, as with other types of violence against women, the associated shame silenced their experience of workplace violence.

Many women reported taking action to protect themselves even if they preferred to not formally report workplace violence. This included confiding in family and friends, seeking information and support from a manager or confronting the perpetrator.

Outcomes were varied for women who reported violence. In some organisations that had established policies and processes in place, the violence was addressed; in some instances the report went no further than the initial person who took the report; and in some cases women were later punished or ostracised for reporting violence. Where responses were inadequate, women attributed this to their managers not fully understanding the extent of the problem, not caring enough or not wanting to deal with it, or managers not having the skills or knowledge to deal with it.

Preventing violence against women in the workplace

This research suggests that although under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (Vic) it is an employer's responsibility to provide a safe and healthy workplace, unless women believe the employer takes this responsibility seriously, they will not take action themselves. The research also illustrates that even where policies and guidelines exist in organisations, women engaged in insecure forms of employment are particularly vulnerable and likely to face barriers to taking action to stop violence. The study demonstrates that to understand and prevent workplace violence it is important to analyse the 'personal and power politics in the workplace and broader societal relationships' (p11). Women offered many suggestions for action against workplace violence including:

The Safe at work? research demonstrates that violence against women in Victorian workplaces is a significant and widespread problem and that the costs are experienced by individuals, families, communities, workplaces and society. Further, the importance of acknowledging women's experiences of violence and taking appropriate action is highlighted.

The research illustrates that women face many barriers to reporting and resolving workplace violence including: being engaged in insecure or low-paid employment; being fearful of losing their job; working in organisations that condone or normalise violence; and the power dynamics between the perpetrator and themselves. This results in women often not reporting or resolving the violence they experience in the workplace.

The extent of workplace violence against women evidenced in the Safe at work? research demands the development of interventions to address this widespread issue. Effective policies, training, prevention strategies and interventions at a statewide level, across industries and within workplaces need to be developed to address violence against women in Victorian workplaces. These need to recognise all forms of violence, physical and non-physical, and the barriers women face in the workplace when responding to the violence they have experienced. Further, the research highlights that addressing the issue of violence against women in the workplace is an individual, community, workplace and government responsibility.

 

Domestic and Family Violence and Sexual Assault Initiative: New projects funded

In February 2005, under the Domestic and Family Violence and Sexual Assault Initiative, up to $1.5 million in funding was announced for 27 community-based projects to be run in 2005-06 and 2006-07. These projects aim to reduce the impact of domestic and family violence and sexual assault through community-based action research, related partnership projects and product development. Funding agreement negotiations are currently underway, and projects are expected to commence in shortly. The Australian Government's Office for Women have provided us with the following table, which presents details of the funded projects and how to contact project managers.

Organisation Project name and description Contact details

Barnardos Auburn
Children's Family Centre
Sydney NSW

Domestic Violence Counselling and Support for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Communities
Funding for this project will be used to recruit, partner with and train CALD counsellors to specialise in domestic and family violence community work. This proposal will also create a database of available CALD domestic and family violence workers who will work with existing organisations who provide specialised domestic and family violence services, in order to provide greater access to hard to reach communities.		 Paul Harkin
pharkin@barnardos.org.au
(02) 9646 2770

Brisbane
Indigenous Media
Association
Cape York QLD

 Cape York Indigenous Media Project
This project will develop and produce culturally-appropriate, locally-owned print and radio information about family violence and sexual assault. It will develop community capacity through training and mentoring. By working with the community the project will explore and overcome impediments to women accessing local services.		 Ian Watson
ian@4aaa.org.au
(07) 3892 0100
Bwgcolman Future
Foundation
Palm Island QLD		 Palm Island 'Safer Tomorrow' Workshops
This project will provide three, three-day, workshops for 80-90 participants. The workshops will develop culturally-appropriate community education tools that will be used by workers in the community to raise awareness, prevent and respond to family violence.		 Svea Pitman
Svea75@bigpond.net.au
(07) 4770 1828
Domestic Violence
Crisis Service
SA		 Safety