Shortly before the country went on partial lockdown, Her Royal Highness, the Duchess of Cornwall spoke at the Women of the World (WOW) Festival to mark International Women’s Day and used it as an opportunity to highlight the need to raise awareness of domestic abuse.
The WOW Festival, held at the Southbank Centre in London, is an annual event celebrating the achievements of women and girls as well as highlighting the obstacles that they face.
Statistics show that 1 in 3 women will experience domestic abuse in their lifetime, showing how prevalent it is and reinforcing the importance of raising awareness.
“Laws alone cannot change behaviourâ€
In her address, Camilla referenced the importance of law, but also stressed that society would not tackle domestic abuse by relying solely on the law.
The Duchess of Cornwall said:
“We all welcome new laws on coercive control, but laws alone cannot change behaviour. The dial is moving forward, but last year, two women a week were killed by a current or former partner in England and Wales alone.â€
Positive changes are being made and will be enhanced by the introduction of the Domestic Abuse Bill, but work must still be done to raise awareness of domestic abuse and the impact that it has on so many people.
We hope that the Bill will be backed up by a public information campaign to raise awareness as well as highlighting the aims of the Bill.
Everyone’s Problem
The social media hashtag for WOW’s domestic abuse segment was #EveryonesProblem – a message that was also referenced by the Duchess in her speech. She said:
“Domestic abuse is everyone’s problem and the solution must be too.â€
Sadly, it is unlikely that there will be a solution to end domestic abuse for good, but we all have a role to play in calling out and challenging the behaviours displayed by perpetrators.
As Camilla said in her speech, domestic abuse has been a taboo subject for too long and this must change.
Talking openly about it will help people to understand what domestic abuse is and will hopefully help those experiencing it to come forward to access support at an earlier stage.
We hope that increased education and training will raise awareness of domestic abuse, helping more people to spot the signs of an abusive relationship.
Our face-to-face training has been temporarily suspended for the duration of the Coronavirus outbreak. but this essential part of our service will be available again as soon as the crisis is over. If you have any questions please don’t hesitate to email admin@leewaynwa.org.uk
