Ethics ....

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…

Dr Simon Longstaff
Executive Director
St James Ethics Centre
PO Box 3599,
Sydney, New South Wales 2001

Re: Australian Children and Women Trapped Overseas by Domestic Violence and Systemic and Judicial Abuse

Dear Sir,

Further to my letter and information mailed to you 13th November 2007 regarding Australian children and women trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse I am once again contacting you to beg for immediate assistance, advocacy and support for my children and myself and all other children and women in similar traumatic situations. I was assured by your staff person Anne Short at the end of November 2007 that although you were very busy at that time you would contact me in the next month or two, unfortunately there had not been any further communication.

In the meantime I have continued as best I could to try and find someone who cares about these issues and will assist us (see letters posted to the online resource I created in the form of a blog www.womenwhowant2gohome.blogspot.com and enclosed letters). 

I am extremely confused and concerned by my lack of success. Is it how I am communicating or what I am communicating? Why are some issues and individuals afforded immediate government assistance and others ignored? Not only does the current government seem to show more concern and compassion for whales than innocent and vulnerable children and women, but during their short term in office have assisted and intervened on behalf of Australians who boarded Japanese ships to protest against whale hunting, the “Bali Nine” and Schapelle Corby in prison transfer negotiations, an Australian woman who chose to undertake a dangerous ice treck across Greenland and needed emergency evacuation, Australians arrested while protesting against and trying to prevent the seal hunt (slaughter) off the east coast of Canada, an illegal immigrant wanted in their home country China on corruption charges, an Australian man jailed in India for supposedly crossing the border illegally – and those are just the cases that I know about from the media. Meanwhile the government ignores my information or insists it has no ability or responsibility to assist us and continues to ignore Australian children and women trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse and not use any of the information I have shared to protect our citizens and prevent this happening to other Australians!

From my experience there would seem to be an enormous ethical gap between what is said and what in relation to violence against children and women and gender equity and human rights issues. (See enclosed letters Prime Minister, GetUp, National Council to Reduce Violence Against Women and Children, Australian Social Inclusion Board, Australian 2020 Summit applications and related letters, and media releases) How is this reflective of government and organisational policy and practice in relation to other gender specific human rights and social justice issues? 


This situation has been so traumatic that my eldest daughter attempted suicide and I still cannot get any assistance or protection for us. I am extremely concerned for my children’s welfare, wellbeing and safety, my wellbeing and safety, the wellbeing and safety of the other Australian woman and her children mentioned in my online resource, all other children and women in this traumatic situation, concerned about security of my information and documents and personal possessions still in Canada and desperate for immediate intervention and assistance for all of us.

My priority is for my children and I and the other Australian mother and children mentioned in my online resource to be safely home in Australia with our families immediately, and for others in similar traumatic circumstances, who are unknown to me, to also receive immediate assistance and intervention - to provide the safety and justice we have been denied for so many years.

These issues need to be part of public and political discourse, and until my children and I are safe we need to not be in any way identifiable - knowing you can ask for assistance and remain safely anonymous would be an important factor in other women and families coming forward to share their information of similar unethical experiences. When my children and I are safe I would like to use my experiential knowledge and extensive research to contribute to and participate in educational and decision making processes that would see gender equity, social justice and human rights issues dealt with in a more ethical, accessible, sustainable and solution oriented manner. 

Immediate assistance, support and advocacy would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,

…


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Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection in New South Wales

Justice James Wood
Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection Services in NSW
PO Box K1026
Haymarket NSW 1240

Re: Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection Services in New South Wales

Dear Sir,

Today I listened to our current prime minister, Kevin Rudd, and federal opposition leader, Brendan Nelson, apologise and say "sorry" for the pain and suffering experienced by all those affected by the actions that resulted in the "stolen generation". Both Mr Rudd and Mr Nelson challenged all non-indigenous Australians to consider how we might feel "if this had happened to us" and to "place ourselves in the shoes of others". Our Prime Minister quoted a woman who wanted us all to hear her message, via Mr Rudd in his address, that "all mothers are important" and "it is a good thing that you are surrounded by love". And I wondered had we really learnt anything from the "stolen generation" experiences.

What will the children of this generation say about their need for protection and how those who are the law-makers, budget-makers, decision-makers and influencers of today responded to "the responsibilities and the opportunities" of child protection currently facing us? What will the adults of tomorrow wish we had done for the children of today – what would they wish had been the outcome of the "Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection in New South Wales"?

I am contacting you to ask for assistance to bring my experiential knowledge, reading, research, reflections and suggestions to the Special Commission of Inquiry based on my hope and belief in your comments (quoted below) that you shared in your opening address to the Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection Services in New South Wales, at the public hearing held on Monday, 17th December, 2007.

"Its validity, and that of any alternative approach to child protection is open for consideration, and we would not want submissions to be constrained to tinkering at the edges of the current system, or to overlook the means by which families in trouble could be supported and assisted so as to avoid becoming subject to the need for care and protection, and in particular falling into the cycle of inter-generational abuse and neglect that can so easily become intractable."
"What we are about is examining management practices and possible strategies that could achieve a co-ordinated, compassionate and effective system that brings together the combined skills of the several agencies and individuals that potentially play a part in the Child Protection System."
"That would be to ignore the environment in which it must work, and of the responsibilities and the opportunities of the other agencies and individuals who are involved."
What I hope you will understand is that there is no pleasure or gratification in asking to share what I have learnt through my children’s and my traumatic experience of domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse from many - individuals, organisations, academics, service providers, politicians, so called "justice systems", lawyers, police … and coming from my children’s and my experience of being some of the many Australian children and mother trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse. What I hope for is change, and to protect and prevent others from similar experiences.

My … attempted suicide, my … is now the same age and at the same stage of life as … was when … attempted suicide and I still can’t find any one who will assist in providing safety, security and support my children and myself or any children and mothers in similar traumatic circumstances.

Here are some of my questions, concerns and hopes regarding the inquiry:

• I am concerned that all details of my communication, information and submission that could in any way be identifying remain confidential, and at the same time hope that the systemic issues I raise will become public knowledge because I believe they should be of public concern.
• Confidentiality is important for safety and security, is there any assistance that would make it safe for me to relate the reality of women who try to protect their children from domestic violence and systemic abuse by providing safety and security for my children, the other Australian woman and her children who are mentioned in my online resource/blog (see www.womenwhowant2gohome.blogspot.com post "Dear Mr Prime Minister …") my possessions and documents - all in Canada - while I am trying to sustain myself and find someone here who will work with me on these family and domestic violence and human rights issues.
• Are there resources available to assist people such as myself who are not employed by someone who will cover their expenses (i.e. government, university, organisations) who have used their family’s personal traumatic lived reality of needing protection to try to make a difference and be an advocate (please refer to accompanying c.d. which contains my c.v., enclosed references and online resource I created) to attend the forums to be held in Sydney? The forums I am particularly interested in are "Role of Courts", "Role of oversight agencies", "Interagency co-operation", "Health and disability", "Assessment model and process", "Early intervention". Or is there some other accommodation being made to facilitate the involvement of, and information sharing with, people in rural and regional NSW in those forums?
• Are there resources available to assist people such as myself, "experts by experience", to prepare a submission? The resources/assistance that would make a difference for me include safety, security, support, encouragement, mentorship and coaching, assistance with materials and copying expenses, assistance to attend forums of interest and relevance to experience and research that are only being held in Sydney, assistance to obtain a wireless internet connection. For others there may be other accommodation requirements including child or family care and transportation. Because of the reality of my experience trying to gain safety and protection for my children and what I have learnt about "unruly practise" (Nancy Fraser) – the gap between what is said and what is done – then I am confident there is much to be gained from listening to and communicating with "experts by experience" such as myself and other desperate mothers which you will not hear from the organisations most directly involved. (A bit like the Royal Commission into the NSW Police Service, where you knew the important information would not be revealed by those being directly investigated in the usual inquiry process.)
• …. is the nearest regional forum to … where I have been staying with my parents who have emotionally and financially supported me for just over a year while I try and find someone in Australia who will actually do something to assist and protect Australian children and women trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse. I understand from my telephone conversation with Julie W at the Special Commission of Inquiry office there will not be any "in camera" forums in regional or rural New South Wales, is there a provision for people from rural and regional NSW to give "in camera" testimony or information to the Special Commission of Inquiry?
• If anyone else submits material to the Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection in NSW, which in any way refers to, relates to, mentions or contains any of the accompanying information or material, or material and information I hope to share with you in the future, then they have done so without my knowledge or permission and without any care or concern for our safety and security, never having made any offers of assistance or support, and not having offered to assist me to bring my own material to the Special Commission of Inquiry. I hope that you will immediately inform me of this deliberate, unethical breach of confidentiality, disregard for our safety, and misuse of my intellectual property. I have already experienced this unethical behaviour from researchers and academics in regards to my writing and research both here and in Canada. The most recent incident involving the Australian Domestic and Family Violence Clearinghouse. I would like to have an opportunity to share the details of these experiences with you to give you an understanding of the realities of the family and domestic violence industry where there are many who chose to personally profit from others pain, without making any contribution to the safety and security of others less fortunate, privileged or safe. (See post "Further out of view … further out of mind…" on my online resource/blog.) There are many who see research and advocacy as mutually exclusive occupations – they are happy to acquire personal currency and status from their work as a researcher/academic/expert -retelling others "stories"- as long as there is no expectation that they actually do anything that might make a difference (many parallels to other forms of power and control, such as the abusive homes mothers are trying to protect their children from, and colonisation such as our indigenous people experienced).
• I hope for the opportunity and safety to share what I wish I didn’t know about the political reality in regards to children and mothers right to safety and security including in relation to recent changes to the Family Law Act. Was the chairperson chosen because of, or despite, the knowledge that she had not assisted and kept secret the experience of someone who grew up in her electorate who needed assistance to protect her children and herself from domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse in a foreign jurisdiction that the federal government chose to provide financial assistance to, but held the government accountable to "judicial fairness" for David Hicks? Why does no one comment on the fact that while the government is choosing to finance foreign jurisdictions that condone violence against children and women it is cutting funding to organisations here that oppose violence against children and women?
• What are the implications for child protection when researchers/academics state, "female politicians will not speak up about these issues (violence against children and women) for fear of male backlash" in private conversations but not in public?
• I would like to share my concerns in regards to problematically misnamed "government funding" (versus "public funding") and the consequences for research topics, outcomes, and accountability to the public – the real funders.

What I am hoping for is the opportunity and support to share my information (my experiential knowledge, extensive reading, research and reflections) in regards to the above and other systemic issues and realities on our and others behalf in regards to children’s, mother’s and family safety and protection, hoping that our experience and my suggestions may contribute to an understanding of "the environment in which it must work, and of the responsibilities and the opportunities of the other agencies and individuals who are involved" in child protection, in the context of the Special Commission of Inquiry into Child Protection in New South Wales.

I also hope that this might lead to contact with someone here in Australia with the integrity and ability to assist Australian children and women trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse and those who have suffered similar experiences here, assistance applying for a Churchill Fellowship to pursue related research, leadership training or mentoring opportunities and the opportunity to contribute to the Australia 2020 Summit, in the hope that my children, myself and others who have experienced abuse, violence and trauma may soon experience protection, safety, security, support – may experience hope.

Sincerely,
…
"We don’t need new technologies to solve our problems; while new
technologies can make some contributions, for the most part we "just"
need the political will to apply solutions already available. Of course
that’s a big "just." But many societies did find the necessary political
will in the past. Our modern societies have already found the will to
solve some of our problems, and to achieve partial solutions to others."

Jared Diamond, "Collapse: How societies choose to fail or survive."
Penguin Books ã 2005, P 522
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Mailed Thursday, 14th February 2008, (guaranteed next day delivery). As yet, no response.

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Take care … take heart … Merinda
 

Digging Wells ...

Greetings, 

May I please share a story about my experience? 

… In my final years of High School my favourite subject was Geology. When I first (unsuccessfully) attended university I needed to justify making a choice to do what I liked in a world with so much need ... so how I worked this out was that I could use geological mapping skills in "underdeveloped" countries in Africa, and by conferring with the women in communities I could empower them by involving them in decision making and drill wells where their lives and their children’s lives would be improved by making water more accessible and children and women not being overburdened by so many hours of their day being consumed by this responsibility. 

Well that was Plan A.... many years later after I had left my abusive former spouse I was driving in to ..... to give yet another domestic violence presentation (this time to medical students) and thinking about how I would communicate in their medical language of "signs", "symptoms", "diagnosis" and "treatment". I hoped to convince them of their important role and responsibility in early diagnosis and appropriate "treatment" of (response to) domestic violence and how this would not only improve the health and lives of women but also obviously their children - it suddenly came to me ... " Oh my God - Canada is the first ‘underdeveloped' country I am working in to empower and improve the lives of children and women!" (I do not think many Canadians would appreciate this story!). Of course I realise that this is not just about Canada … the reality is every country in the world is “underdeveloped” in its response to children and women’s human rights and equality issues. 
Take care .... take heart .... Merinda

Is there anybody out there?

Greetings,

As mentioned in an earlier post (How many politicians does it take to protectInnocent and vulnerable children and women?) there was one elected official who replied ... copied below is my response to her email.

"Dear Senator .... ,

At the same time that the Australian government is informing me that they have no responsibility or ability to assist any Australian women and children trapped overseas by abusive spouses and justice systems that reward abuse against children and women they are providing immediate consular assistance to Al-Qaeda trainees in Yemen, apprehended paedophiles and drug traffickers in Asia, funding and assistance has been provided for the “Bali Nine” and Mr Downer has travelled to Indonesia to negotiate prisoner exchange programs for convicted traffickers, funding has been provided for David Hicks lawyer and Mr Ruddock has flown to the USA to negotiate on Mr Hicks behalf, Robert Jovicic has been provided with funds and accommodation while his return to Australia was arranged, ten million dollars was spent to rescue Douglas Woods from Iraq and I don’t know how much was spent rescuing Australians citizens from the most recent strife in Lebanon ….. and that’s only what I have had the chance to read about in the online news! Oh, and the government has also provided financial support for a foreign jurisdiction that uses its resources to deny Australian children and women justice, safety and human rights.

So to get my government to care about whether or not Australian women experience justice in the court system of a foreign country it would appear they would have to be a paedophile, drug trafficker or trainee terrorist – but innocent female victim’s of physical, emotional, sexual and financial abuse are of no concern! I’m not sure how this is reflective of the government’s commitment to its programs such as “Violence Against Women – Australia Says No!” and recent comments about respect and equality for women being an important Australian value.

My perspective is that government officials and government departments have a responsibility to warn Australian women that countries (even seemingly developed and democratic countries like Canada) might choose to break their own laws to reward male violence against immigrant women. Should Australian women be able to sue the government if they end up in a similar situation to mine? The government has had this information, that I had provided at personal expense, since 1999, and to the best of my knowledge has not shared the information they have to protect Australian women.

(I would be curious to know how much the government spends warning people about the dangers of choosing to be involved in drug trafficking, which we all know is an illegal activity, and how much it spends to assist these people after they ignore the warnings and still choose to break the law.)

Female M.P.s who are demanding the government bring David Hicks safely home immediately are telling me the government has no responsibility to do anything for Australian women and children trapped overseas by criminal activity, or that they can’t speak up for us because they are only the opposition, or they won’t get involved in situations that effect only one person and speaking up for David Hicks or Scott Parkin “is different”.
If I can connect with another Australian women who lives just over an hour away, who is in a similar situation, then how many other Australian children and women must be in this situation across Canada, in North America, around the world – no-one here is helping us otherwise we wouldn’t need to beg our government to help us – we would have been home safely with our families many years ago, happily and safely contributing to our communities and country.

We have no criminal records, we don’t even have to say if you bring us back we will stop committing crimes and start living like decent citizens because we have always conducted ourselves that way.

I met my former spouse on his sixth trip to Australia; he said he wanted to live in Australia, that he believed Australia was a better place than Canada to bring up children. When we married it was with the condition that we lived in Canada for ten years then returned to Australia permanently. I retained my Australian citizenship; my children were all registered as Australian citizens by descent. I kept my part of the agreement and temporarily gave up being near family and friends, temporarily gave up living in Australia, gave up my secure government job and went to live in rural ...... To contribute to the business we took over from his parents I learnt how to do all the book-keeping, ............., I got my semi-driver’s license and even worked outside when it was –42C not counting the wind-chill!

I thought going to live in a foreign country for a period of time would contribute to me being a well-rounded, tolerant and understanding citizen of the world – all it has done is expose me to the trauma of spousal and systemic abuse and expose me to the experience of finding out that my government cares more about criminals, drug traffickers, paedophiles and trainee terrorists than it does about abused children and women!

There is no way that I could have know beforehand that my former spouse would be an abusive husband, there is no way that I could have known beforehand that this province has two ways of dealing with domestic abuse depending on whether the woman is a Canadian citizen or an immigrant. There is no way I could have know that the Canadian Federal Justice Department finds this acceptable and does not hold provincial jurisdictions accountable to the application of the law or the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms or the Bill of Rights, or the United Nations conventions they have ratified such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women, Declaration of the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

The Australian Consulate in Ottawa, Australian Department of Foreign Affairs, Attorney General’s Department and MP for my home town electorate all received copies of letters (in 1999) detailing their belief that my former spouse abused our children and myself and their concerns for our safety from:

Doctor
Social worker who facilitated government funded Domestic Violence Support Group I attended
Counsellor my children and I saw
Pre-school teacher
....... Action Committee on the Status of Women
....... Battered Women’s Advocacy Network
....... Family Service Bureau

Ethically it is tearing me apart and killing me to know what I know .... to worry about my eldest child .................. , to worry about my other children and to worry about how I am going to keep surviving myself through this .... and to know all the things I have done, all the people I have shared information with in Canada and in Australia and still not be able to make any difference for my family or any other family.

Many people in this province including justice department employees, MLA's from both the main political parties in the province, the former Federal Justice Critic for women, social workers, lawyers.... as well as Florence Ievers, co-ordinator Federal Status of Women and John H Sims the deputy Federal Justice Minister have received information about this situation and done nothing- apparently they find it acceptable for the justice department to have their employees misrepresent information (from doctors, social workers who run government funded domestic violence support groups, counsellors, even international experts on child witnesses to domestic abuse like Dr Peter Jaffe) about immigrant women and their children's experience of abuse at the hands of Canadian males and to contact judges behind the scenes and lie about the abused woman.

There is not a single politician who would publicly say they find male violence against children and women acceptable but not a single one of the many politicians I have shared this information with and begged to speak up for my children and myself and all the other children and women in similar circumstances has done so.

This is a variation of human trafficking. At the moment many are calling for women that have been brought to Canada under false pretences for the purpose of sexual slavery to be allowed to stay in Canada. There are many women who were enticed to come to this country under false pretences by the men they married, who turn out to be abusive, that are desperate to leave! They came to Canada in the belief they were entering a loving, respectful relationship only to be physically, sexually, emotionally and financially abused. They came here on agreements about living in this country and being contributing citizens for a period of time and them returning to be near their own family and contribute to their own country, only to be isolated from their family and country and unable to return home. They are desperate to leave and return to the safety of their homeland – safe from the spousal and systemic abuse they experienced in Canada. Unfortunately, like me, they have discovered that it is acceptable in Canada to bring a woman into the country under false pretences and physically, emotionally, sexually and financially abuse her if you marry her first!

My experience as an immigrant has included the bizarre and traumatic experience of sharing my personal experience of abuse and personal resources to try and make a difference for all children and women experiencing abuse in Canada, while at the same time the government, justice department and justice system of the province I have the misfortune to be in are using all of their resources to misrepresent information about our experience of abuse, to lie about me, lie about the abuse my children and I experienced and deny us the safety and justice we deserve and the opportunity to return to safety and family in Australia – and instead reward my abusive former spouse and grant him the court ordered right to continue to abuse and control us.

I just want my children and I to get to go home together while we are still alive, while my parents are still alive, for my children to experience life in a country that does not pay its justice employees to reward male violence against children and wives, to be in the country my former spouse declared was a much better place to bring up children than Canada, to be in the country he promised and we agreed we would all be living in ten years ago.


It is with great sadness that I prepare to come home alone to find a way to make this situation public knowledge in Australia because Canadians won’t talk about this abuse of immigrant women and their children. Ethically I feel I have a personal responsibility to let Australian women know about the dangers of life in Canada if married to a Canadian. Somehow I need to find a way to let all potential female immigrants know about this reality. There is no pleasure in the thought that despite some of the wonderful people I have met here it is my ethical responsibility to warn other women about the reality of the Canadian lack of justice and safety for abused immigrant women. I am coming home to Australia in December for Christmas to see my parents who have both been in hospital and had serious health concerns since I last saw them; in January while I am home I want to be as strategic as possible in trying to rectifying this situation for my children and myself and all the other children and women that must be suffering in a terrified silence.

What I would prefer is that my children and I could all be safely home for Christmas, as we should have been ten years ago. What I would prefer is that I could find someone here who would initiate and ensure the actions required to show that there is some credibility to Canada’s Charter and Bill of Rights and would speak up for all children and women in this situation.

I am desperate to find someone who will bring these unsafe and unjust situations to the government and public’s attention in a way that does not endanger any individual woman or her children, protects their privacy, and creates a safe and accessible pathway for all women to easily and quickly obtain the safety and security she and her children need and deserve.

The provincial Justice Department, politicians, Ombudsman, Children’s Advocate and many others have received letters and extensive documentation from myself, service agencies, women’s advocacy groups and the professionals (doctor, social worker with government funded Domestic Violence Support Group, counsellor, expert on child witnesses to domestic abuse) who the justice department misrepresented (some of these people even came to meetings I organised with justice department officials). As well, the justice department and politicians have received letters from a provincial service agency who informed the justice department that they were currently working with five other women who had the same experience.

Not only did these experienced and concerned professionals all recommend that I should have sole custody of our children, they all expressed concern for my children’s and my safety in regards to my former spouse. The justice department has known since 1998 that their Family Law Division employee misrepresented this information and instead reported that they all recommended joint custody and made no reference to any of the concerns about our safety. The justice minister received letters from these professionals and copies of these people’s reports expressing their concerns for my children’s and my safety and has never acted on this information. And the Australian government has known this since 1999!

The provincial Justice Department fought me with all available resources until I suffered a depressive mental breakdown. I could no longer care for my children or myself. I begged both the social worker and health nurse who had know me for a quiet a while, knew of our circumstances and been involved with my efforts to have the justice department respond appropriately, to help me arrange care for my children and hospitalise me. Instead the social worker contacted the Department of Social Services to advise them that she thought I was a risk to my children .......... – that was basically the end of our relationship as my abusive former spouse used this opportunity to persuade my young children that I didn’t care for them, didn’t want them, didn’t love them and to prevent any contact between us. 

And now years later I still can’t get anyone to deal with this situation despite the knowledge of ............ . Everyone’s response is that I should just wait and hope that when they are older my children will contact me – I am so afraid after my eldest child's .... that my children won’t survive until they are older – and even if they do manage to survive themselves we will still all be trapped in a country that rewards male violence against children and women, away from the safety and support of our family in Australia, in a situation where their father is still abusive and controlling their lives and they are still exposed to an extended family and culture who believes in supporting abusive males.

The Executive Director, Policy, Planning and Evaluation, this province's Justice Departement, approached me at a Justice Department focus group, to say, “What happened to you should never have happened to anyone!”. Then they and the justice department fought me with all the resources at their disposal until they managed to create the situation that lead to my mental breakdown.

Not only did the justice department choose to misrepresent information (commit perjury/obstruct the course of justice) to denigrate me but also to denigrate my family in Australia, never mentioning how highly regarded my family is in our local community, or that my father was one of the first people to receive the “Citizen of the Year Award” for his involvement in organisations and committees that contributed to my siblings and my childhood and our community.

I have reason to believe that after I initiated complaints with the provincial Justice Department they found alternative employment for their employee (who misrepresented information about the abuse my daughters and I experienced) in the provincial Ombudsman’s office. When I approached the Ombudsman for assistance they told me they couldn’t get involved with a complaint about the justice department – but this is contradicted byinformation in the Ombudsman’s annual reports available online.

Everyone’s suggested solution to our traumatic experience involves me not speaking my truth about our experience, but “accepting” what has happened, accepting that my daughters and I are trapped in a foreign country that believes in rewarding male violence, accepting that my daughters and I will never be safe, accepting that my children and I will never be at home with our family in Australia. If this were happening to someone in their family would they expect them to “accept” the same circumstances? … Or would they expect justice, safety, freedom from fear and freedom from abuse for their family members?

Despite all that I have done to contribute to Canada (see attached c.v.) my former spouse and the justice department have colluded to portray me as the problem. Everything I have contributed to Canada has been stolen from Australia. Everything I have done in the last twenty years, having children, co-operating and co-owning a business, being an employer, being an organic farmer, being involved in community organisations, volunteering, donating, starting a high school scholarship, have all been stolen from Australia by a foreigner who deliberately misrepresented himself and his intentions and a province and country who prefers to reward male violence against immigrant women and their children than to uphold their own laws and protect immigrant women and their children in the same way their laws were intended to protect Canadian women and children.

The provincial Justice Department was committed to an outcome that would enable my former spouse to continue to emotionally and financially abuse me, continue to have me live in fear and continue to control my life. All Australian female immigrants to Canada deserve to know that this could be their reality too!

Not only have I been suicidal over this situation but also now ..... and I still can’t get anyone to do anything. Many people have told me that I have done more than anyone else they know of in regards to our situation – and I’m still not able to protect my children or motivate those who could have and should have protected us and all the other children and women in similar circumstances.

I keep connecting with more women who have had similar experiences, more women whose children, forced to have contact with abusive fathers have mental health problems and are suicidal. More Australian and other immigrant women who experienced abuse from their Canadian spouse and then further abuse from the Canadian justice system.

I know so much, have researched and learnt so much – things I never wanted to know about - ethically I need to find a safe way to use this information to be part of making a difference. Who will work with me so that my children and I can return home to Australia, safely, so that other immigrant children and women can be safe? Who will work with me so that I can safely make use of all my lived experience and research to protect other children and women?

Due to the effects of these experiences on my physical and mental wellbeing it is a challenge to articulate our lived experience and the experiences mentioned here are just a small part of the trauma my children and I have endured.

To help you understand our situation I can forward you copies of the relevant letters, reports and emails that have been shared with the many people that I believed had the responsibility and privilege to protect all vulnerable children and women. This information was sent to outspoken law professor, Professor Mirko Bagaric, Deakin University, ... maybe there is a way to arrange for this information to be shared with you/forwarded to you if you are concerned about Australian children and women overseas.

(This information includes copies of reference letters in regards to presentations I have made about domestic violence to medical students, nursing students and clergy and a video about planning to escape from situations of domestic violence that received provincial funding from the justice department and national funding from the National Clearing House on Domestic Violence ............... , copies of correspondence with the provincial Justice Department, copies of letters and reports from concerned professionals.)

I had also contacted the University of Newcastle Legal Centre that assisted Cornelia Rau and her family, but they are overwhelmed with potential cases and have experienced funding cut backs. 

What I hoped was that if there are legal experts who for ethical or professional reasons want to assist Australians overseas who break the law then it would be relatively easy to find legal experts who want to assist innocent Australian victims when overseas jurisdictions break their own laws! So far I have been unsuccessful.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely, ".......... As with my other correspondence I am waiting for a reply!


Take care .... take heart .... Merinda

The Hon Julia Gillard, MP ... please advocate for women and children!!!

The Hon Julia Gillard MP
Deputy Prime Minister
PO Box 6022
Parliament House 
Canberra ACT 2600 

Re: Australian Children and Women Trapped Overseas by Domestic Violence and Systemic and Judicial Abuse

Dear Ms Gillard,

I understand that the women of the federal Labor Party actively lobbied the Prime Minister to appoint a female as next Governor General. You and your colleges must be very pleased with yesterday’s announcement of Her Excellency Ms Quentin Bryce, AC as Australia’s first female appointed to this position. Ms Bryce is a gracious, involved and intelligent woman, an excellent choice for the position. 

Unfortunately there is a one in millions chance for an Australian female to become Governor General while currently there is a 3-5 in 10 chance of a female in Australia experiencing domestic violence. It would make more difference in the everyday lives of girls and women to address the violence there is a high probability they will experience than to remind them of the opportunities there is little chance they will experience. 

What is the benefit to girls and women for women who already have power, privilege, safety and security to receive greater opportunity when the plight of children and women who do not have any power, privilege, safety or security and are experiencing family and domestic violence is ignored?

While many hope that the announcement of any female to such a position will be an example and inspiration for all girls and women that they can do anything they want to and set their minds to, what does it mean to the many women who are unable to persuade anyone to invoke and uphold domestic laws and international human rights agreements to protect their children and themselves from family and domestic violence? For a woman such as myself who has experienced many people, including Dr Peter Jaffe (international expert on child witnesses to domestic abuse, Academic Director, Centre for Research on Violence Against Children and Women, University of Western Ontario and Director Emeritus, Centre for Children and Families in the Justice System) tell me that I have done more than any other mother they know to try and protect my children and they don’t know what else to suggest, then this is other experience of the traumatic and hidden injustices and hypocrisy of our country and our world.

On the same evening news program as Ms Bryce’s appointment announcement we were also informed that sailors on the Sea Shepherd who have been arrested as a result of their activities protesting the seal (slaughter) hunt in Canada subsequently received immediate assistance from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs. I first contacted the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs begging for assistance for my children and myself in 1999. Please help me, and all the other Australian children and women trapped in Canada and other countries because of domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse understand why we are not eligible for or deserving of any Australian assistance while so many others are? 

From the articles and letters I have posted to the online resource I created in the form of a blog www.womenwhowant2gohome.blogspot.com it can be seen that many people, politicians and organisations have been contacted and begged to provide assistance for all Australian children and women in these traumatic situations - all who from their public statements I had believed found violence against children and women unacceptable. What I have unfortunately and traumatically discovered is that many who say they care about these issues do not feel any moral or ethical obligation to actually do anything! When directly approached to assist children and women who are experiencing the terrible effects of family and domestic violence and subsequent systemic and judicial abuse, they have a myriad of excuses for not getting involved – not doing anything that might provide safety, security and support for these innocent and vulnerable children and women. 

Yet these same people and their peers readily demand and hold the government accountable for providing support and “justice” for David Hicks, believe it was appropriate and responsible of the government to spend $10 million rescuing Douglas Woods from Iraq, are urging the government to do more to save the whales from the Japanese whale hunters, find it acceptable for tax-payers dollars to be spent providing consular assistance for Australian paedophiles caught and jailed in Asia, that funding the Bali Nine’s and Schapelle Corby’s legal defence and arranging prisoner exchanges and transfers to Australia for convicted drug traffickers are appropriate uses of Australian public resources as is coordinating with the Canadian government to provide assistance and rescue from Lebanon for Melissa Hawach, her daughters and her hired assistants. 

Not only do these people refuse to assist Australian children and women in desperate circumstances but they also refuse to use the information I have shared to protect and prevent other Australian women and their children from the same horrific experiences.

The trauma of this situation led to …. attempting suicide and subsequently being hospitalised, and I still can’t get any assistance or support in Canada or Australia – and am concerned for …. safety and …. who is now the same age and at the same stage of life as … was when … attempted suicide. Currently I have no way of knowing how this has impacted …. From what I know and understand the upcoming Mother’s Day is not only an extremely traumatic and perilous time for me but also for … , especially … who has already attempted suicide once.

My personal perspective of my and others women’s experience of being trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse is that it is a personalised, individualised, to-order, form of sex trafficking – women trying to escape situations of entrapment overseas because of domestic violence face similar challenges to women who are trafficked for the sex industry. We have all been deliberately mislead about the intent or purpose for us travelling to another country, we all experience multiple forms of abuse, when we try and seek assistance from the local authorities in the country we have travelled to under false information and misrepresentation of the intent and circumstances involved we are not given the support or assistance that that country’s laws and international laws would supposedly guarantee, many are too embarrassed or too afraid to tell their families what is really going on and many of us feel the only way to escape is to commit suicide. One big difference is that somehow many people see this as being acceptable and legal when individual males treat individual females that they have married in this way. Apparently marriage makes it acceptable.

The more I share information about our situations, the more I learn about the systems that are supposed to provide justice and democracy the more I become confused and concerned … for example, I applied to participate in the Australia 2020 Summit and had contacted Tim Costello to ask for his support. My application was rejected; Tim Costello’s response ignored the social exclusion issues of violence against children and women. 

There are other people I had contacted over the years who have been selected to participate in the Australia 2020 Summit that despite the information I have shared with them are not available to speak up about these human rights abuses, are not available to speak up for Australian children and women, are not available to use the knowledge they have and the opportunities they have to make a difference for those less privileged and less safe than themselves. What benefit is it to women and girls to have 51% female participation in the Australia 2020 Summit discussions if the issue of violence against women – which will affect between 30- 50 % of females in their life time – will not be addressed? What was the criterion for being chosen to participate in the Australia 2020 Summit and why, when it appears that no one else will speak up about violence against children and women was my application rejected?

Doing nothing deliberately endangers not only my children and myself and the other Australian woman and her children mentioned in my online resource/blog but all Australian children and women who have or will experience domestic violence - whereas immediate action can protect us, prevent similar traumatic experiences and provide a message of inspiration, hope, equity, justice and respect for all girls and women. 

Please find enclosed a DVD “How Then Shall We Live: A Process for Making a Plan to Escape Abusive Relationships”, which … and I were both involved in producing. If you require I can also provide you with copies of my c.v., references regarding my domestic violence advocacy and education work, letters from professionals (doctor, social worker with domestic violence advocacy program, counsellor, pre-schoolteacher) expressing their concern about the … Justice Department employee misrepresenting their information and concerns about my children’s and my safety and experience of domestic violence and other documentation. The Prime Minister has also received extensive documentation in regards to these circumstances, which you could ask him to share with you if you are interested.

I am extremely concerned for my children’s safety, my safety, the safety of the other Australian woman and her children mentioned in my online resource who are also trapped in Canada because of domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse, all other children and women in this traumatic situation, concerned about security of my information and documents and personal possessions still in Canada and desperate for immediate intervention and assistance for all of us.

Any advocacy, assistance, support or advice that would address these issues and bring us to safety while protecting our identity and privacy would be greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,


* *


Accompanying copy of Australia 2020 Summit Submission …

Australia 2020 Summit Submission
Submitted for both the Social Inclusion and Governance Working Groups

(As my application to participate in the Australia 2020 Summit was rejected, and some of the people who have been accepted to participate include people I have asked to speak up for children and women who have experienced domestic violence and for whatever reason are not available to do so, I am curious to see if my submission will be accepted or rejected. I am still available to participate in the Australia 2020 Summit to bring my experience, knowledge, ethics and solutions to this process on behalf of the millions of Australian children and women who have experienced domestic and family violence and whom no-one else seems to be available to speak and advocate for in public for real change, for safety, security, support and human rights.)

Submission

Ethical & economic responsibility (Noel Pearson “Understanding Ethics” “Ethics & Political Practice” “Ethics Public for the Sector”)

Responsible & credible government accounting - General Progress Indicator, Index of Social & Economic Welfare “more reliably measure economic progress, … distinguishes between worthwhile growth & economic growth” (wikipedia - information & references) GDP calculates Dr Patel crisis economically beneficial! Trial comparative accounting period?

Government priorities - $10 million rescue Douglas Woods from Iraq, consular assistance & legal funding Corby, “Bali Nine”, consular assistance Australian paedophiles arrested Asia, lobbying & $500,000 flight David Hicks – Australian children & women trapped overseas by domestic violence & systemic & judicial abuse ignored. Australian values? Economically responsible? Equity & social inclusion for children & women? Other situations we don’t talk/hear about?

“Nothing about us without us” include “experts by experience” in decision-making. Currently “ethical gap” between rhetoric & reality, researchers have vested interest in research, politicians in re-election, “experts by experience” in change so nobody experiences problems they experienced (listen to any “victim”, Tim Costello “Streets of Hope”, Muhammad Yunus “Banker to the Poor”.)

Misnomer “government funding” v “public funding”-language, ownership & outcomes - affect on social research? Who benefits? Bias & influence?

“Watchdogs” HREOC, Ombudsman, separate from other government departments, more citizen involvement/access; FOI access, “whistleblower” support & assistance = prevention/risk-management. (“Bega Butcher”, DoCs NSW - those with power/“experts” weren’t “whistleblowers”.)

Micro credit for self-sufficiency/self-determination - Muhammad Yunus “Banker to the Poor”

Sustainability - www.sustainabilityadvantage.com

Community based social marketing for local solutions www.cbsm.com

Enable cross-sectoral partnerships - community, government, business. 

Implement signed international human-rights instruments. 

Economics & Rule of Law – “The Economist” March 15th 2008 p83-85

Justice - Margaret Cunneen “Ninian Stephen Lecture”

Management - Jim Collins, “Good to Great” & “Good to Great & the Social Sectors” Random House 



“Recognising our responsibility & opportunity for creating our reality is the only way I see for making the shift from fear to love – from a world of scarcity & greed to one of abundance in which all people are empowered to fulfil their needs in sustainable ways. … we must break through long cultural conditioning on our lack of power, our willingness to accept, & thus co-create, economic & political inequities that disempower people, currency systems that promote these inequities & anything else preventing the full expression of human potential in sustainable ways.” 

Margaret Somerville, Australian ethicist, quoting Elisabet Sahtouris in “The Ethical Imagination” Anansi Press 2006 (p 238-239) 


“We don’t need new technologies to solve our problems; while new
technologies can make some contributions, for the most part we “just”
need the political will to apply solutions already available. Of course
that’s a big “just.” But … modern societies have already found the will to 
solve some of our problems, and to achieve partial solutions to others.”

Jared Diamond, “Collapse: How societies choose to fail or survive.” 
Penguin Books 2005, P 522


“It is hardly a moral act to encourage others patiently to accept injustice which he himself does not endure”.
Martin Luther King


* *


Mailed Monday 14th April 2008 (guaranteed next day delivery) to Julia Gillard, Maxine McKew, Natasha Stott-Despoja and Her Excellency, Ms Quentin Bryce, AC.

Waiting for a response … hoping for some care, concern, support and justice before Mother’s Day for Australian mothers and their children trapped overseas by domestic violence and systemic and judicial abuse …

How "justice systems" really work! Injustice and Australian women & children trapped overseas by domestic violence & systemic & judicial failures & discrimination

Why Australian mothers and children cannot obtain justice without immediate government advocacy and assistance. How "justice systems" really work!!! Relevant Information from the Milgaard Inquiry Judge’s Summary of Findings and Recommendations

Inquiry Report available at www.milgaardinquiry.ca

Chapter 7 Summary Findings and Recommendations 

61. The combination of legal error respecting the application of s. 9(2) of the Canada Evidence Act and Chief Justice Bence’s impatience respecting the evidence given by Nichol John at trial probably contributed to the wrongful conviction of David Milgaard. 
(One example of judicial or legal error in our case was that the judge knew evidence from the justice department misrepresented evidence from a counselor, so the judge decided that the counselor was not sufficiently expert regarding domestic violence -despite thirty plus years as a counselor and co-authoring a book on abusive relationships - instead of dealing with the discrepancies between what the justice department employee quoted the counselor as saying and the counselors own testimony of what she said she told him and the information she had shared and her concerns the judge made a choice to ignore/disregard the counselors evidence in preference for the justice department employee’s evidence which contradicted what the judge heard directly from the counselor .) 

70. Linda Fisher’s 1980 statement to the Saskatoon Police did not receive the attention it deserved.
(The provincial and federal justice departments and governments did not investigate or respond appropriately to information received in writing directly from a doctor, social worker with a justice department funded domestic violence program, counselor, pre-school teacher or myself that information used at the trial and presented by the justice department’s family law division employee misrepresented information that had been shared regarding the violence my children and I had experienced and these professionals concerns for our safety and well-being.) 

96. The criminal justice system failed David Milgaard because his wrongful conviction was not detected and remedied as early as it should have been. 
(Despite overwhelming evidence of problems and lack of adherence to protocol and standards of practice in our case that we presented to the justice system they refused to appropriately investigate, deal with or remedy this situation and the problems.) 

97. The conviction review system in Canada is reactive and places too heavy an onus on the wrongfully convicted. The successful remedying of a wrongful conviction depends upon the wrongfully convicted person being able to identify credible grounds to challenge the safety of the conviction and convince the federal Minister of Justice that the conviction warrants a further review by the Court. In practice, only those grounds advanced by an applicant are investigated.
(I did not have the necessary resources, knowledge, safety or support to identify all the grounds to challenge the process and problems.)

98. The conviction review system in Canada is premised on the belief that wrongful convictions are rare and that any remedy granted by the federal Minister is extraordinary. Change is needed to reflect the inevitability of wrongful convictions and the responsibility of the criminal justice system to detect and correct its own errors. 
(There is no provision by the justice department to deal with any problems with a custody and access report prepared by their staff – it is assumed it would be accurate, correct, follow their protocols and standards of practice and be credible, so there is no process for review, discussion or bringing evidence to the contrary.)

99. A wrongfully convicted person should not bear the responsibility of investigating his own conviction in order to identify all grounds needed to support a remedy. It is beyond the means and abilities of most wrongfully convicted persons to do so, because they are usually not in the best position to identify credible grounds in a timely manner. 
(Despite the fact that the justice departments own employee had caused the problem I had the sole responsibility of using my own resources and whatever support and assistance I could obtain to investigate this and try and bring the necessary information to the justice department in a way they deemed acceptable. I did not have the means or ability or safety to do this and the justice department did not facilitate this.)

100. In the case of David Milgaard, the onus of identifying credible grounds in a timely manner was a heavy one that was simply beyond the means and abilities of Milgaard and his supporters. They investigated his conviction for eight years before they filed an application for review with the federal Minister, relying on two grounds that were quickly determined to have no merit. 
(“Justice delayed is justice denied”.)

101. If an independent agency such as the United Kingdom’s Criminal Cases Review Commission had been in place to investigate David Milgaard’s case, it is likely, with its proactive methods and expertise, that credible grounds would have been identified much earlier than they were, even though Milgaard had not raised them.
(As there was no independent organisation to hold the justice department accountable the department did as they wished – which was to not deal with or appropriately investigate the situation.)

102. The federal Minister of Justice should not be the gatekeeper to determine whether an alleged wrongful conviction should be returned to the Court for further review. The involvement of a federal politician in the review of individual cases of alleged wrongful conviction invites public advocacy and accusations of political influence. The office of the federal Minister, identified as it is by the public with prosecutions, and being occupied by a political figure, does not lend itself well to the adjudication of issues which arise in the judicial system and are to be returned there. 
(People who were a part of the justice department and government and had a vested interest in not dealing with these issues were the gate-keepers and refused to deal with these issues. Public advocacy is not safe for women and children who have experienced domestic violence.) 

103. As long as responsibility for conviction review remains with the federal Minister of Justice, there will be the potential for political pressure and public advocacy to play a role in the decision making process, or, at the very least, for the perception to exist that the decision can be so influenced. The conviction review process must not only be truly independent, it must be seen to be independent.
(Dealing with the justice department to try and get a credible review was not an independent or accountable process nor could it have ever appeared to be independent, when we asked for out of province and Australian experts to be involved the provincial justice department refused to have them involved.)

***
The five women mentioned in the Family Service Bureau letter (quoted in “Situation Synopsis” on the online resource/blog I created www.womenwhowant2gohome.blogspot.com ), “Jane” and I all had supposedly good lawyers who we paid many thousands of dollars to for legal assistance and advice (I spent over $100,000 on lawyers, experts for court etc). None of us could find a lawyer who would speak up about the injustice of having an assessor – in our case a Justice Department employee- misrepresent information in court about the abuse we experienced -unlike David Milgaard whose lawyer at times worked pro bono for him and spoke up publicly about the problems in the justice system. We will never experience justice if the Australian government, legal experts and others won’t immediately assist and advocate for us, as the provincial and Canadian governments and justice departments have shown their commitment to supporting and keeping secret these human rights and justice violations against Australian women and their children. 

It is impossible for us to hold the Canadian and provincial government and justice systems accountable (as can be seen from the findings from the Milgaard Inquiry) and everyone is aware of this. For the Australian government to continue to tell us, and I don’t know how many other Australian children and women in similar traumatic, unjust and unsafe circumstances, that it has no ability to “intervene” is to condone violence and human rights abuses against Australian children and women and is deliberately discriminatory when the media, politicians and advocates have made us all aware of the many Australians overseas experiencing difficulties and legal or justice problems that the government has intervened for and provided legal assistance, consular assistance and other resources to ensure their safe and prompt return to Australia. Why should we deserve the same or be expected to accept any less?

The theme for International Women’s Day, March 8th 2009 was “Women and men united to end violence against women and girls”. “The only thing necessary for evil to prevail is for (supposedly) good men to do nothing” Edmund Burke