The Rights Of Man

CAFCASS IN THE MIDLANDS FAILING CHILDREN AND FAMILIES - HOW MUCH HURT HAS BEEN CAUSED?

The secretive and unaccountable Cafcass (or Kafkass)in Birmingham and the Black Country has been given an inadequate rating by Ofsted . It was given the lowest score: Grade 4 

The Birmingham and Black Country report itself says "The overall effectiveness of the service provided is inadequate. Crucially, some key services are not currently delivered to minimum standards. Performance is weak in meeting some statutory functions."

Cafcass in the East Midlands failed in 2008 (link) and Birmingham and the Black Country report is here (link).

What both reports don't cover and is the human misery caused by these incompetent so-called 'public servants'. The families torn apart, the children who don't get to see their fathers (and in rare cases mothers) anymore and the general heartache of dealing with a secret state that does not care for the people they are entrusted (and paid well for) to look after and do their best for.

This is a true scandal and thousands of children and fathers in the Midlands are suffering because of it.

NEW STATISTICS ON MALE VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

New analysis has been produced on the latest British Crime Survey figures (link) on domestic abuse and domestic violence.

These figures surely now mean that the Government and others can no longer ignore male victims.

The analysis is can be found at the ManKind Initiative web-site:- 

The ManKind Initiative

ESSENTIAL BBC RADIO 1XTRA DOCUMENTARY ON MALE VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE

The BBC are continuing with their coverage on male victims of domestic abuse and domestic violence.

There was a long documentary on BBC Radio 1Xtra yesterday. It is available here.

NEW REFUGE NETWORK FOR MALE VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Dawn Hardie and Rachel Allen have opened up a new network of refuges in Northamptonshire for male victims of domestic violence. The network through their Next Steps Housing Association has created 100 places in 35 refuge houses across Northamptonshire for husbands and partners of abusive women.Coverage was received here (link, link, link).

With the emerging evidence (link) through the British Crime Survey that 3.2 million men have been a victim of domestic abuse in their lifetime, is clear that some people such as Dan and Rachel are taking it seriously.

Now we wait on the Government, local authorities and others to take up the cudgels or are male victims going to be left with a clutch of refuges in Northamptonshire, Wales, The West Midlands and the South West and nothing else?

HARMAN DECLARES THE CITY GUILTY OF SEXISM EVEN BEFORE SHOWTRIAL BEGINS

At the end of last year, the Equalities and Human Rights Commission declared they would investigate the City because of the wide gender pay gap and harassment. The site covered the issue here.

Last week, Deputy Prime Minster and Minister for Women, Ms Harriet Harman, the UK's leading anti-male campaigner, wrote to the Commission asking them to investigate these issues especially as the gender pay gap in financial services is 40% (link, link).

In the UK, one of the founding tenets of the legal system used to be that you were innocent before being proven guilty. In the War Against Men, no such distinction counts in the Orwellian world that Harman and others live in. She has already declared that men in financial services are guilty.

She says "There is something rotten in the remuneration system of the banks and finance companies. Men paying themselves millions of pounds of bonuses each - and then saying that they didn't know what was going on." She denounced what she called an "old-boys' network" paying itself millions amid financial turmoil.

As covered here before, the gender pay gap is mainly down to lifestyle choices not discrimination. That many women choose not to work at the high-end of the financial services system because of the long-hours, time spent away from family and often the pure pressure. Many women, certainly not all, prefer not to have to deal with it and leave it tho their husbands whilst they look after their children. Also many women choose to work at bank counters etc because a lot of this work can be part-time and fits into their lifestyle.

To say it is down to discirmination (as if no woman got a big City bonus), it one of those classic Politically Correct lies that if you say it enough, people will believe it.

The City and the financial services industry have already been found guilty by Harman et al and now we have to put up with the unedifying witch unt and show trial.

What is a shame is that no-one in the City has the balls to challenge her.

MALE VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC ABUSE FEATURED ON BBC BUT GOVERNMENT STILL PLAYS THE GENDER STEREOTYPE CARD

On Tuesday 10th Feb the BBC covered the issue of male victims of domestic abuse and domestic violence extensively. The coverage featuring a victim and the ManKind Initiative (link) included BBC Radio 1 and 5 interviews  as well as other coverage - link, link, a phone-in, a blog, an editor's note and coverage across the regional network. 

This was based primarily on new Home Office figures (link) which show that 3.2 million men have been a victim in their lifetime (20% of men) and that 2.7 million men have been a victim of partner abuse. The BBC used the hook which showed figures highlighting that younger men (20-24) were more likely to be a victim than women of the same age.

One of the points made by the victim and others was the fact that as a man you are automatically arrested by the police and the ManKind Initiative stated that services for men were 35 years behind that for women. The Government, local authorities and the police are institutionally sexist.

In a bizarre sense of timing, the Government made an announcement that proves it (link).

On Tuesday, the Home Office teamed up with the British Banking Association, to give help to victims of domestic abuse and to help launch a small card for victims. The press release mentions and accepts that 3.2 million men are victims (a first) yet then falls back to the same old gender stereotypes:-

• It mentions a purse-sized credit card - not a purse or wallet sized credit card
• The quote from the Home Secretary only mentions women
• The quotes are only from groups that help women, none for men
• The actual credit card sized leaflet describes all victims as she, never he and she

What it shows is that the Government just does not get it. It may begrudgingly acknowledge the figures but it just cannot help itself and be gender -neutral.

The coverage on the BBC today was at least some recognition and this has gradually and glacially started to improve things but the Government are continually and wilfully burying their head in the sand.

Much work to do...

WHEN WILL THE GOVERNMENT END MIXED-SEX WARDS?

The Government announced (link) that it plans to penalise hospitals that still continue to have mixed-sex wards. Some 15% of hospital trusts still use at least one open-plan mixed-sex ward.

This blight, despite their promises (it was a 1997 manifesto commitment, some 12 years ago!) and the fact (link)they are 'rattled' by it, little progress has been made (link).

Dr Anthony Halperin, from the Patients Association, said the government had not given the full facts, with 30% of all wards sharing toilet facilities. Men and women find that very embarrassing, and it nullifies having single-sex wards." He said mixed-sex wards were about keeping beds occupied all the time, and were simply a "question of cost".

The Conservatives have said it is a priority for them but this scandal, despite all the promises and tax increases, cannot continue. 

HOW CAN EQUALITY AND HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION CONTINUE TO IGNORE MALE VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Last week, the Equalities and Human Rights Commission launched its Map of Gaps (link) campaign, aimed at naming and shaming councils who do not provide adequate services for women who are victims of domestic violence. It is part of the End Violence Against Women (EVAW) who believe that 100 council's are at risk of being found guilty.

At the same time last week, the Ministry of Justice published figures (link, link) that showed the numbers of women being arrested for violence had increased by 22% since 2004. This was covered on the site with regard to the correlation with domestic violence (link).

The key question is that with 40% of victims of domestic violence and domestic abuse being men (link), alongside an increase in violent women, why has the Equalities and Human Rights Commission not produced a similar campaign for male victims?

Why, if the Commission truly believes in equality, is it then ignoring people who make up 40% of the domestic violence victim population?

HARMAN AND BAIRD USE THE RECESSION TO ATTACK MEN

There was a TUC report last week (link) that said that female employment was being hit harder by the recession as many women work in the retail sector. The TUC said there had been a 2.3% increase in the redundancy rate for women even though the redundancy rate for men is just 6% and the female redundancy rate is just under 4% (graph).

The report received lots of media coverage, because It as about women, of course -(BBC) and had politicians rushing around to highlight their concern.

The way that this report though is being used by the anti-male feminists to inject some fervour about the fact that the redundancy rate is due to discrimination against women is an outrage and a clear abuse (link). There is absolutely nothing that Hariett Harman and Vera Baird won't use to attack men, make up stories about female discrimination with not one shred of evidence and generally show that their view of equality is to be free to attack men.

Whenever there is a recession, it hits both men and women whether they are in employment or not. A husband losing his job affects his wife and the wildcat strikes (link) show the effects on men. Also there tends to be a sharp increase in male suicide rates and depression when there is a recession as some men who are redundant feel worthless if they cannot provide for their family.

There is, of course, a queue to condemn the strikers but would it be the same if the strikes were being led by women. It is unlikely, very unlikely.