Chief law officer warns coercive control ‘widespread problem’ in Australia | Anthony Galloway
Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has warned the scourge of coercive control is a widespread problem throughout the nation as he begins work with his state and territory counterparts to establish a nationally consistent response to the psychological abuse.
Coercive control is generally recognised as an abusive pattern of behaviour which includes controlling what someone wears, limiting access to money, tracking their location, controlling whom they see, and persistent texting. It can be a precursor to physical violence.murder of Hannah Clarke and her three young children
Dreyfus said on Saturday that the tragic death of Clark and her children was “absolutely a catalyst” for action to be taken on the development of a nationally consistent approach. “That’s the key to this - that coercive control involves a pattern of behaviour over time where the perpetrator is asserting dominance over the victim,” Dreyfus said.