What Is Family Violence?

Family violence is defined by the Women’s Charter (Family Violence and Other Matters) (Amendment) Act 2023 as follows:

Family violence occurs when someone commits physical, sexual, or emotional or psychological abuse against a family member. Abuse may take the form of a single instance or a course of conduct or behaviour. The abuse must either be directed at the family member or be capable of being seen, heard or otherwise perceived (directly or indirectly) by the family member.

Physical abuse includes:

• “Conduct or behaviour that causes, or threatens to cause, personal injury or physical pain to a person.”
• Conduct or behaviour that “threatens a person with the death or injury of the person.
• “Wrongfully confining or restraining a person against the person’s will.”

Sexual abuse includes:

• “Conduct or behaviour that coerces, or attempts to coerce, a person to engage in sexual activity.”

Emotional or psychological abuse means:

• “Conduct or behaviour that torments, intimidates, harasses or distresses a person.”
• Conduct or behaviour that “causes or may reasonably be expected to cause mental harm to a person, including thoughts of suicide or inflicting self‑harm.”

According to the Ministry of Social and Family Development, the following acts are considered to be examples of family violence:

Physical abuse

“Examples include hitting, pushing, punching, slapping, kicking or causing burns. Physical violence also includes the use of physical force to restrain, punish or force-feed someone, resulting in bodily injury or impairment.”

Sexual abuse

Examples include:

• “Forcing or threatening someone to engage in sexual activity (e.g. molest, rape).
• Grooming a person to engage in sexual activity by gaining and maintaining sexual access with them, and preventing them from telling anyone about it.
• Engaging in sexual activity with a person who is not capable or who lacks the mental capacity or understanding to give consent (e.g. children, persons with intellectual disability).
• Engaging in non-contact sexual activity without their consent (e.g. forcing underaged persons to witness sexual activity/pornography, indecent exposure, voyeurism, threatening to or distribution of sexual images or videos of another person, obscene messages/calls/remarks).

Examples of online sexual violence include:

• “Pressuring someone to send explicit images of themselves.
• Posting sexual comments or requests without consent.
• Distributing sexual images or videos of another person without consent.”

Emotional and psychological abuse

Examples include:

• “Insulting or humiliating a person.
• Intimidating a person by screaming, making threats, harassment or destroying property.
• Emotional blackmail or using emotions to manipulate a person.
• Demeaning a person in front of others or in public places.
• Monitoring and controlling a person’s activities and relationships.
• Persistent hostility, including ignoring or blatantly rejecting a person.
• Confining a person within the home or stopping a person from going somewhere.”

According to the Ministry of Social and Family Development, the following acts are considered to be signs of family violence:

Physical abuse

Physical signs of abuse may not be obvious, as victims may be intimidated to stay silent or feel ashamed to talk about the abuse. Victims may also cover visible injuries with clothing.

Visible signs may include:

• “Wounds, cuts or bruises at different stages of recovery
• Unexplained and frequent incidents of broken bones, fractures, sprains or skull injuries, and pain upon touch
• “Unnatural” injuries such as a bruised eye or any signs of restraint/punishment (e.g. rope/gag marks, cigarette burns)
• Sudden changes in behaviour (e.g. wearing heavy makeup, wearing clothes that cover more of the body than usual)
• For babies, poor appetite, vomiting, lethargy, irritability, difficulty breathing or seizures could be symptoms of Shaken Baby Syndrome, a type of traumatic brain injury inflicted on a baby when the baby is forcefully shaken”

Sexual abuse

• “Unexplained bruises or injuries around the private parts, genital diseases or Urinary Tract Infection (UTI)
• Easily scared or nervous about physical touch
• The display of unusual, sudden intense fear and avoidance of a particular person, place, or object (e.g. fear of bathing because the sexual violence occurred in the bathroom)
• The use of non-age-appropriate knowledge or language, interest in sex or displaying sexualised behaviours (e.g. a young child might ask his/her classmate to get into positions that look sexual in nature)
• Significant changes in mood (e.g. more depressed or anxious)*
• Self-harm or suicidal behaviours (e.g. threatening or attempting suicide, preoccupation with death)*
• Running away, isolating self, or withdrawing from friends*

*These may also be signs of other problems that the person may be experiencing and not necessarily due to sexual violence.”

Emotional and psychological abuse

“Victims may suffer from low self-esteem, depression, trauma and anxiety, and some may have suicidal thoughts. Victims often feel isolated, helpless, confused about their situation and live in fear. Emotional and psychological abuse can occur on its own or co-exist with other types of abuse.”