FiLiA

View Original

Support Clause 49 of the Domestic Abuse Bill

By Gemma Aitchison

Whenever we see a serious crime reported, from terrorism to murder, you can be sure that the man who did it has a history of violent behaviour. There is a pattern of abuse. The majority of terrorists are also perpetrators of domestic abuse. Murderers of women and children are usually rapists. They don't come from nowhere.

We know these actions have an entitlement, sexual objectification and gender stereotypes at their core. But by failing to hear women when they report domestic abuse, rape, and stalking the state is failing to recognise the pattern of male violence. And by ignoring this history of violence, the state is risking our lives.

Laura Richards discussed this with Gemma Aitchison in a FiLiA podcast and calls for a serial perpetrator register. Laura Richards is a criminal behavioural analyst, former New Scotland Yard, and an international expert on domestic violence, stalking, sexual violence, homicide and risk assessment. She is the founder of Paladin in 2013, the world’s first National Stalking Advocacy Service. In 2014 Richards was awarded one of Marie Claire's 'Women At the Top', has a BSc in Psychology and Sociology, an MSc in Forensic and Legal Psychology, and is a member of the British Psychological Society.

Often quoted saying stalking is, "murder in slow motion”, Richards' work, along with her involvement with the charity Protection Against Stalking, is credited with helping to legislate anti-stalking laws and coercive control law in the UK.

FiLiA supports the new Clause 49 of the Domestic Abuse Bill. Recognition of the patterns in male violence is hugely important. In fact, the state fails to protect women without it. A register of serial perpetrators and their monitoring and management would save the lives of many women and children.

I found Laura's work on this particularly important and personal as my own little sister was raped and murdered by a man who had raped two women before her. The question of what difference will this make is a difference I wish were true. A difference that makes me angry it's not already done. Because the problem is simply that institutions meant to protect us don't listen to women's voices, and dismiss their experiences. Our bodies are piling up as a result.

The Domestic Abuse Bill will reach Report Stage in early July. Please use your voice and write to your MP to ask that they support New Clause 49. You can use this template letter, and find your MP’s name here.