ivaluemyprivacy{at}mailblocks.com wrote:
> If anyone wants to send a reply to this (they do print letters from
> outside Ireland), E-mail it to:
> independent.letters{at}unison.independent.ie
>
> http://tinyurl.com/6269s
> i.e.
>
http://www.unison.ie/irish_independent/stories.php3?ca=53&si=1349363&issue_id=12150
>
> Male victims of violence in need of helpline
>
>
> Sir - Mr Frank Fahey TD, Minister of State at the Department of
> Justice, Equality and Law Reform, on Tuesday, February 22, launched
> another Awareness Campaign, which purports to deal with domestic
> violence but, in fact, deals only with violence against women. Yet
> again the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform excludes
male
> victims and gives a helpline number for female victims only.
>
> In his speech at the launch, Minister Fahey acknowledged that men can
> also be victims but he continued referring to domestic violence as if
> it consisted only of violence against women. He states that he has
> taken some time to familiarise himself with some of the issues ". . .
> in relation to violence against women to date" and that he has only
> just begun to learn about ". . . the complexities of violence against
> women". It would appear that the Minister has no interest in learning
> about the issues in relation to, and the complexities of, violence
> against men.
>
> The television campaign, which the Minister was launching, refers to
a
> national helpline operated by Women's Aid and the Minister claimed
they
> ". . . will be on hand to offer support to any victims, women and
men,
> who need their help". Women's Aid, as the name implies, has always
been
> a service exclusively for women and when men have contacted them in
the
> past, they have been advised accordingly. They subscribe to a
feminist
> model of domestic violence, which precludes the possibility that
women
> use violence as a means of controlling their male partners. Male
> victims will not use such a helpline and it is naive of the Minister
to
> make the statement that they did.
>
> Four years ago, his predecessor, Mary Wallace, and officials from the
> Department gave a commitment to Amen that future campaigns would be
> gender neutral and would be equally inclusive of male and female
> victims. Sadly, they have reneged on that commitment and are
persisting
> with their sexist, sectarian and discriminatory approach despite all
> the evidence that has emerged regarding the reality of male victims.
>
> The Minister is, in fact, insulting male victims by his token
reference
> to them in his speech, thereby further isolating and marginalising
> them.
>
> Mary T Cleary,
> Amen, Railway St,
> Navan, Co Meath

A similar letter was in the Irish Times on Monday, 28th February.



--- UseNet To RIME Gateway {at} 2/28/05 1:34:13 AM ---