She also referred to a report by the Office of the Children’s Commissioner in the Northern Territory that said that Aboriginal women in the NT are 80 times more likely to be hospitalised as a result of assault.
Sorting out the technical terms
It’s worth noting that “domestic violence” and “family violence” are related, but different terms.
“Domestic violence” refers to acts of violence (physical, sexual, emotional and psychological) that occur between people who have, or have had, an intimate relationship. It tends to involve an ongoing pattern of behaviour aimed at controlling a partner through fear.
“Family violence” is the most widely-used term to identify the experiences of Indigenous people because it includes the broad range of marital and kinship relationships in which violence may occur, rather than just intimate relationships. In order to cover both definitions, commentators often use the expression “domestic and family violence” in Australia.
Langton used the broad term “violence against Indigenous women” as part of a wide-ranging discussion about funding for domestic violence services, so we have checked a range of data on both domestic and family violence.
Are Indigenous women 34 to 80 times more likely to experience domestic and family violence?
It is difficult to measure the full extent of domestic and family violence against women as most incidents go unreported, but we know that Indigenous women are much more likely to experience domestic and family violence than non-Indigenous Australian women.
The National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children 2010 – 2022quotes a figure of Indigenous females being up to 35 times more likely to experience domestic and family violence than non-Indigenous Australian women. And the Productivity Commission’s 2011 Overcoming Indigenous Disadvantage report says Indigenous women and girls are 31 times more likely to be hospitalised due to domestic and family violence related assaults compared to non-Indigenous women and girls.
The National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children 2010 – 2022quotes the 2009 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Social Survey as finding that around a quarter of all Indigenous women have experienced physical violence in the last 12 months and that nearly all of them knew their perpetrator.
We also know that Indigenous people are disproportionately victims and offenders in homicide incidents, and that most of these occur between family members.
There is evidence to support the claim that Indigenous women are up to 80 times more likely to experience violence in the “worst areas”. There is also anecdotal evidence and media reporting to support this assertion.
We know that rates of domestic and family violence are higher in remote Indigenous communities, and that there are even greater barriers to reporting violence to authorities in small remote communities than there are in regional area and metropolitan centres. Anecdotal evidence from community leaders in remote communities does back up this claim.
Why are Indigenous women more likely to experience domestic and family violence?
There are various explanations as to why rates of domestic and family violence are more prevalent in Indigenous communities. Many accept that the impact of colonisation, ongoing trauma from the displacement of Indigenous people from their traditional lands and kinship groups, the removal of children from their families, and the ongoing negative relationship between Indigenous people and the criminal justice system have all contributed to heightened levels of violence.
For others, the low expectations that mainstream society has for Indigenous Australians, the high rates of unemployment and poverty, and substance misuse are more likely explanations.
Verdict
The available evidence on domestic and family violence suggest Marcia Langton is broadly correct. There is evidence for the higher end of the claim, including anecdotal evidence and
