Imagine if women were never hurt

AT first glance, the poster girl for Cachez cosmetics looks as healthy and wholesome as any other. But look a little closer. Under the make-up, the glamour and the gloss, the scars of her home life are clearly visible, if only you care to see.

Cachez is not a real brand. It is instead part of an awareness-raising push launched by Amnesty International as part of its long-running Stop Violence Against Women campaign.

All the posters pose the question "Problem? What problem?", a reference to the worryingly high levels of acceptance of domestic violence in modern British life.

A recent ICM survey showed that 30 per cent of men believed that domestic violence is acceptable in some circumstances; that one in five would not call the police if they knew someone was mistreating their partner; and that more people would report a person for kicking their dog than for kicking their partner.

The true extent of domestic violence in the UK is not known, but surveys indicate that there are more than half a million incidents in England and Wales every year.

What we do know is that domestic violence constituted nearly a quarter of all violent incidents reported within the British Crime Survey (2001-2); the emergency services receive one call about domestic violence every 60 seconds; and, on average, two women are killed as a result of domestic violence every single week.

But still the reaction of many people in the UK remains: "Problem? What problem?"

"Our posters aim to confront complacency surrounding domestic violence in a powerful new way by portraying a disturbing world where violence has been entirely normalised," said Kate Allen, UK director of Amnesty International.

"We are saying let's wake up to the epidemic of domestic violence in this country and press for a concerted government strategy that addresses all aspects of violence against women at all levels."

Locally, Amnesty International in York is getting behind the campaign by organising a number of awareness-raising events.

On November 16, there will be a talk by Mexican activist Esther Chavez at City Screen. On November 23, there will be a special screening of the film Once Were Warriors, also at City Screen. And on December 12, members will be manning a stall in Coppergate as part of Human Rights Day.

Imagine a world without violence against women... York Women's Aid

Today we've had to turn away five women who needed refuge.

Tomorrow the refuge will be empty. The police won't be called to attend another domestic, and the health visitor won't suspect that her client is being abused.

Today domestic violence makes up a quarter of all reported violent crime, although most goes unreported.

Tomorrow Chloe won't have to worry that the children might make a noise. Stuart won't ask his auntie why dad hits mum, and Daniella will be able to invite her friends to tea.

Today two women in the UK will be killed by their partners.

Tomorrow social services won't call another case conference because of domestic violence. A teacher won't worry that a child seems withdrawn and anxious, and our phone lines will be quiet.

Today women approach agencies 11 times for support before leaving a violent relationship.

Tomorrow Sarah won't be too scared to sleep. Dan will be happy to break up for the Christmas holidays, and Daisy won't worry that mum is going to die.

Today domestic violence is part of the everyday lives of seven out of ten children being monitored by social services.

Tomorrow midwives won't wonder about those bruises. The neighbours won't have to turn up their television, and a woman won't be murdered by the person who's supposed to love her most.

Women's Aid is working for tomorrow.

York MP Hugh Bayley

It is hard to believe that every year, 120 women in the UK are killed by a current or former partner.

Domestic violence affects the lives of thousands more and is the most common form of violence experienced by women, with one in four suffering from it at some point in their lives.

It is a silent but dangerously pervasive crime. The victims are women, and sometimes men, whom you and I interact with every day, our friends and neighbours, our colleagues and members of our family.

Domestic violence accounts for 25 per cent of all recorded violent crime, which is one of the reasons why the Labour government has introduced the Domestic Violence Bill.

This bill, which I fully support, will bring in measures to prevent domestic violence, improve guidance and protection for victims, and bring more perpetrators of this crime to justice.

A world without violence against women is a world to campaign for. This is why I give my full support to organisations in York that help victims, such as the Domestic Violence Forum, York Rape Crisis and York Refuge.

As MP for the city, I have helped female constituents who have been in violent relationships or who have felt threatened at home to organise child support payments, claim benefits and find safe accommodation.

North Yorkshire Police chief constable Della Cannings

Tackling domestic violence is a main priority for any police force and mine, North Yorkshire Police (NYP), is no exception.

My interest in this subject commenced in the early 1980s, when I went to the USA for 15 months to study police response to domestic violence. What I saw convinced me that domestic violence was a global phenomenon.

The Home Office has national police performance indicators relating to domestic violence, the main ones being the percentage of reported incidents where an arrest was made (NYP 78 per cent) and, of these, what percentage involved partner-on-partner violence (NYP 88 per cent).

However, the use of arrest powers is only a small tool in the box to eradicate this cancer.

The Domestic Violence Bill will assist all in their fight with the notable introduction of a code for victims, increased reparation and a domestic violence register.

Locally, I have invested heavily throughout NYP in our fight against domestic violence.

Through the Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership, we have invested in full-time domestic violence co-ordinators across the force area.

Officers have been specially trained to deal appropriately with victims, and the control strategy contains an objective to reduce violent crime.

However, it is commonly accepted that the police alone cannot tackle domestic violence. We need a more holistic, multi-agency approach.

From a police perspective, the main benefit of a world without domestic violence would be no victims or witnesses, giving my officers and staff more time to concentrate on other areas of policing.

Richard Best, director of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation

If we are going to stop violence against women in the home, the UK needs a national policy with two components: to increase safety for the woman and her children as an urgent response, and to address the man's violent behaviour over a longer time scale.

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation has funded work on this issue over many years. One of the most important reports we have published considers the success of the Domestic Violence Intervention Project, a programme of prevention for men and support for women.

This project helped women understand that violence is not their fault and is entirely unacceptable, with support groups combating the shame, self-blame and destruction of self-belief which can strongly inhibit women's attempts to end violence.

For the violent men, the most effective tool was re-enactment, involving going through an incident in slow motion and learning how to recognise and change patters of behaviour.

There are no simple solutions. But proactive work with women and, in parallel, challenging work with men - which is not an alternative to other forms of sanction - can increase women's safety and reduce men's violence.

As is so often the case, funding for the Domestic Violence Intervention Project proved fragile and insecure. A national policy with support for interventions of this kind would seem to merit the urgent attention of the Government.

Updated: 10:30 Wednesday, November 10, 2004