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SAAP
Women's Domestic & Family Violence Services Anxiously Wait for
News.
Women’s
domestic and family violence services across Australia await the
outcome of the SAAP V negotiations between the Commonwealth and State
Governments. WESNET member services anxiously scan the news to see the
future for women and children who are abused in their own homes. SAAP,
Australia’s major response to homelessness, is currently subject to
disagreement between the governments about how much they each should
pay.
“Women
and children who are subjected to violence and abuse are forced to
flee their homes and seek safety in women’s shelters, refuges and
safe houses”
said Pauline Woodbridge, National Chair of WESNET, “we
need more services for these families, not less.”
“Women
and children often become homeless as a result of the violence they
experience, and with that homelessness, comes poverty. Why should
Australian women and children forced into homelessness through no
fault of their own, find they are turned away from a service sector
that cannot cope with the demand?”
asked Ms Julie Oberin, WESNET Victorian representative. “Funding
cuts, as a result of the Australian government’s arguments,
will have a terrible impact right across this country” said Ms
Oberin.
The
Commonwealth’s own independent evaluation into SAAP found that SAAP
was effective and timely, however just to maintain the existing
services for the next 5 years, a 15% increase was required.
All the States and Commonwealth
should be discussing increasing the funding another 25% to service the
unmet demand” said Terri Francis, Tasmanian representative for
WESNET.
“Even
after the last 6 years of the Commonwealth $50m expenditure on the
Partnerships Against Domestic Violence initiative, due to end in June
2005, violence to women and children goes on. Women and children face
a double whammy as attention to their plight moves on and services set
up to help them become scarce”,
said Sue Brownlee, Northern Territory representative of WESNET.
“There
are too many women in rural and remote communities that have no
services at all”,
said Ms Shirley Slann, WESNET Indigenous representative. “We need more services in these areas and that means we need more
money in SAAP”.
“It
is never acceptable to put women’s and children’s safety at stake
because governments disagree over whose responsibility it is”
said Ms Woodbridge, “we urge
the governments to do the right thing and provide adequate funding for
our services without delay”.
For
further information please contact:
Pauline
Woodbridge,
National Chairperson, 07 4721 2888
Julie Oberin, Victorian Representative, 0419 539 346
Shirley Slann, Indigenous Representative, 07 4743 0946
Sue Brownlee, NT Representative, 08 8945 1388
Terri Francis, Tasmanian Representative, 03 6344 6535
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