A way through the thicket
In order to effectively respond to social ills, we need to understand their key contributing factors. The key drivers of family violence include gender inequity, colonisation and ongoing colonisation. Recognition by the Government that these are the main causal factors for family violence – and that family violence involves long-term patterns of coercive control – will increase the safety of women and children. It is vital that the Government’s National Strategy to Eradicate Sexual and Family Violence reflects this analysis if it is to be effective.