A leading expert on violence against women has called for a drastic rethink of current intervention methods to address Australia’s current crisis. The proposals include GPS tracking of so-called “fixed men”.
DR Hayley Boxallformerly of the Australian Institute of Criminology and now a researcher at the Australian National University, told the Sydney Morning Herald such a proposal “could be worth considering”.
So what would that mean?
Essentially, special police would be tasked with finding men who fall into this category of “fixed men.”
The authorities would then monitor social media activities and online presence.
If it was found that the men were planning “violence,” they would be drafted by the police.
Boxall noted that the current approach, which focuses on reforming offender behavior, is not achieving the desired results. Instead, the focus must shift to more preventative measures.
Micaela CroninAustralia’s national commissioner on domestic, family and sexual violence has indicated that Boxall’s research, which includes the GPS tracking proposal, is currently under review, after a year she described as “devastating” for violence against women.
The situation is extremely precarious as the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has found that intimate partner homicide is the most common form of murder in the country.
So far in 2023, the number of women killed in suspected family violence incidents stands at 43.
Last month the nation was shocked by the shocking death of a 21-year-old Lily James which was found in the toilet of a gym at St Andrew’s Cathedral College.
The main suspect in the investigation into her murder was her former partner and fellow teacher at school, Paul Thijssen.
A similar GPS tracking program is currently being used in the UK to protect public figures.
However, a similar approach is also being trialled for people who are likely to commit domestic violence.
According to the host of the breakfast television show Mornings, the issue has recently received a lot of media attention in the UK Holly Willoughby gave up her role after a man’s plan to kidnap her was uncovered.
There’s more to come.
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