We must ensure that domestic violence awareness yields results

[Extract]
Australians have recently seen an increased focus on raising awareness about domestic violence. Rosie Batty, whose son Luke was killed by his father, was awarded the 2015 Australian of the Year to highlight the issue. And, in late 2014, the Victorian government appointed Fiona Richardson as Australia’s first minister for the prevention of family violence, followed by the announcement of a royal commission into family violence.

As a Queensland Police constable, I (Terry) can still remember the groundbreaking impact of enforcing the state’s Domestic and Family Violence Protection Act, which was introduced in 1989. Domestic violence has been an agenda item for some time, then. It is not something that society, nor governments, have recently discovered.

But perhaps it is an opportune time to consider what positive results we are seeking on domestic violence. What performance or success indicators are we using to measure the effectiveness of our responses? Do we need to consider a different approach to domestic violence?