'We all have a role to play': N.S. non-profit says society-wide response needed to tackle intimate partner violence

Those who work in the non-profit sector are speaking out about the increase in cases of intimate partner violence in the Maritimes.

Since October, five incidents have resulted in six homicides in the region; five of those homicides were in Nova Scotia and one was in New Brunswick.

They come after Nova Scotia adopted a bill in September declaring domestic violence an epidemic in the province.

Dr. Meghan Hansford, a program manager with Adsum for Women and Children, says there is a notion that violence against women is a private matter that shouldn’t be talked about, which minimizes and normalizes the issue.

“We really cannot continue this narrative – it’s very much a public issue and one that we should be concerned about,” she said during an interview with CTV Atlantic’s Crystal Garrett.

“And what is really challenging is this pervasive issue only seems to get attention when there’s fatalities, particularly when the rates of intimate partner violence nationally continue to be on the rise.”

There were three murder-suicides resulting from intimate partner violence in Cole Harbour, Enfield and Yarmouth in the fall. In each case, police say a woman was killed by a man who then killed himself.

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Last month, a woman was allegedly killed by her husband on Christmas Eve in Saint John, N.B. He has been charged with second-degree murder in her death. Then a woman and her father were killed by the woman’s partner, who then killed himself, on New Year’s Eve in Halifax, according to police.

A Nova Scotia woman was also murdered on Dec. 30 in Edmonton and her death is considered an intimate partner homicide.

Hansford said, while the holidays may be an added stressor on relationships, domestic violence happens “all year round.”

“The reality is that homes are actually not a safe place for many women. One-in-four report having experienced domestic abuse, so there has been an increase, an alarming increase, of domestic homicides, which kind of really underscores the overall critical need for immediate action,” she said.

Hansford said, while Nova Scotia’s bill declaring domestic violence an epidemic is significant, more commitment is needed.

“We desperately need to be naming it, we need to be framing it, and we need to take some long overdue action,” she said.

“We’ve seen with COVID-19 and how governments can respond effectively with immediacy to an epidemic and political leaders suggesting that they need more time to understand the scope, or the work needs to be targeted, is actually misjudged and dangerous. Right now, we’re missing the full support and critical funding being directed toward organizations and groups working in communities because we’ve seen the reality and the consequences of continued inaction, it’s clear,” she added.

Hansford said all levels of government need to work toward a “meaningful and sustained” society-wide response.

“And by that, I mean it encompasses a range of stakeholders that have roles and responsibilities including government, Indigenous governments, health-care sector, the justice system, non-profit and community-based social services, businesses, workplaces, media, schools, education – we all have a role to play, including survivors and perpetrators. We really need a whole society response, and it needs to be multifaceted.”

Hansford said anyone experiencing violence of any kind should reach out for help.

“There are professionals available to help guide you through that process of leaving, if that’s what you wish to do, or to help you create a safety plan to help you have someone to talk to and to get the supports in place,” she said.

“It is critical that you do reach out for help and we need to identify maybe family or friends or your support network that you can kind of reach out and just let them know that this is happening and to lean on your support system if you can to try and get them to help you navigate your way through.”