By JOLENE OGLE
SHOCKING new statistics from a local support organisation show Noosa has a dirty, dark secret when it comes to domestic and family violence.
Centacare SCOPE Domestic and Family Violence Services have reported between 15 and 28 victims are attending Noosa Magistrates’ Court every fortnight to apply for a Domestic Violence Order (DVO) against their partner or family member, with some of these applications made by the police.
Centacare SCOPE manager Brigitte McLennan said SCOPE, which provides support for victims of domestic and family violence, attends all local courts on a rotation basis and is often saturated with requests for help.
Recent research from the Australian Bureau of Statistics states as many as one in three women experience DV in at least one form during their lives, but Ms McLennan says domestic violence is difficult to measure as many victims don’t come forward.
“The number of victims could be two, even three, times more than what is reported,” she said.
In the past three months from May, SCOPE has supported 644 victims in DV courts throughout the region, including Noosa, averaging 20 contacts per month.
In the same period 341 referrals to the organisation came from the police who had attended a DV incident.
Noosa Heads officer in charge Senior Sergeant Steve McReight said domestic and family violence incidents were a high priority for the police.
“We take it very seriously and have checks in place to make sure we’re doing all we can to help people affected by DV,” he said.
Sen Sgt McReight said the police now had better powers to assist victims of domestic violence, including entering private property and detaining offenders for 24 hours.
On Tuesday, five people faced Noosa Magistrate’s Court charged with breaching a domestic violence order.
Sen Sgt McReight said it was also important to help offenders understand the conditions of a DVO.
“Many times I have seen someone breach a DVO and it’s because they don’t understand the conditions of the order. We work with the courts to make sure offenders know what they can and can’t do to prevent breaches,” he said.
Ms McLennan said the community could help bring domestic and family violence out from behind closed doors.
“It’s important to talk about it and make that call. If you think someone is in trouble, then pick up the phone,” she said.
Ms McLennan said domestic violence killed one woman every week.
“If one women per week was killed by a shark attack, there would be outrage, so why is there not outrage over the death of one woman per week because of domestic violence?” she said.
Snr Sgt McReight said anyone could phone the police to report a domestic or family violence incident and remain anonymous.
If you or anyone you know is experiencing domestic violence, you can call DV Connect on 1800 811 811, the police on 000 or visit www.scopeDV.org for more information on domestic violence.
