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Show Support to the ’16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence’ Campaign

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16DaysThis Saturday marks the beginning of ‘The 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence Campaign’.

This international campaign originated from the first Women’s Global Leadership Institute coordinated by the Centre for Women’s Global Leadership in 1991.  It spans from 25th November 2015 ( the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women)  to 10th December 2015 (Human Rights Day) and is a time to galvanize action to end violence against women and girls around the world.

Women’s Aid have been part of the movement for a number of years raising awareness of domestic abuse and challenging society’s attitude to the subject.

Women’s Aid’s theme this year is ‘Healthy Relationships’ providing an opportunity for to promote healthy relationships with young people and highlight issues and ‘alarm bells’ in relation to unhealthy relationships that they might encounter in the future.

Over the course of the 16 Days Campaign, Women’s Aid will also be posting ’16 Myths for 16 Days’ on their social media in order to help dispel myths and common misconceptions around domestic abuse. Life Law NI are assisting Women’s Aid this year with raising awareness of the 16 Days Campaign and of domestic violence and the protection afforded by the law in Northern Ireland to victims of abuse.

You can learn more about the 16 days Campaign here

For further information on how the law can protect you from Domestic Abuse, please fee free to contact us here 

Anti-Slavery Day 2017 – Modern Slavery & Human Trafficking in NI

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Today is Anti-Slavery Day 2017.   

Anti-Slavery Day,  provides an opportunity to raise awareness of human trafficking and modern slavery, and encourage government, local authorities, companies, charities and individuals to do what they can to address the problem.

We are very grateful to Rebecca Grounds and Sarah Bruce of Belfast and Lisburn Women’s Aid for allowing us to share this piece on Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking in Northern Ireland with our followers.

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IF YOU REQUIRE ASSISTANCE IN RELATION TO SEXUAL EXPLOITATION YOU CAN CALL THE 24 HOUR DOMESTIC AND SEXUAL VIOLENCE HELPLINE, A COMPLETELY CONFIDENTIAL SERVICE, ON 0808 802 1414
IF YOU REQUIRE ANY FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE LAW REGARDING HUMAN TRAFFICKING IN NI, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US DIRECTLY ON INFO@FHANNA.CO.UK 

 

The Impact of Domestic Abuse on Mental Health

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To mark World Mental Health Day earlier this week, Sarah Bruce & Dympna McKeown of Belfast and Lisburn Women’s Aid wrote the following article which very eloquently looks at the impact that domestic violence and abuse can have on a person’s mental health. 

We are very grateful to Belfast and Lisburn Women’s Aid for allowing us to share this piece with our followers:-

World Mental health Day_October 17_Blog1 (002)

If you require assistance in relation to domestic abuse, you can call the 24 Hour Domestic and Sexual Violence Helpline, a completely confidential service, on 0808 802 1414
If you require any further information on the law regarding domestic abuse in NI, please feel free to contact us directly on info@fhanna.co.uk 

 

Citizens Advice Debt Advice Service

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CAB logoCitizens Advice Northern Ireland launched their Free Debt Advice Service funded by the Money Advice Service in April 2016. 

In her guest blog for Life Law NI, Gemma Willis, Money Advice Project Manager, Citizens Advice, describes the service and how to get in touch.

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The Citizens Advice Debt Advice Service was launched following recent research from Money Advice Service which showed that 15% of the adult population in Northern Ireland are over indebted.  

The service aims to provide advice and support for those who are struggling to deal with debt. This is now more important than ever when we consider that in our society, many families face new and challenging pressures. One of the greatest of these is debt.

The Citizens Advice Debt Advice Service offers free, confidential and impartial advice and is available throughout Northern Ireland via face to face, telephone and online services.  We offer debt advice in each Council area and our freephone helpline is available across Northern Ireland.

 Clients can access the service in the following ways:-

Problem debt is rarely an isolated financial problem without additional consequence. The stress of managing tight finances, dealing with creditors, as well as the stigma associated with problem debt can lead to mental health difficulties, family breakdown and addiction.

Citizens Advice Northern Ireland wants to engage with clients at the earliest opportunity as unfortunately research also shows that individuals will wait more than a year before they seek advice.  This leads to further distress and pressure on families.

You can speak directly to a specialist debt adviser at Citizens Advice in Northern Ireland by clicking here. Our webchat service is open from 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday. If outside these hours, you can leave a message and a Debt Adviser will get straight back to you on the following working day.

For further information on this service, feel free to visit our website at https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/nireland/debt-and-money/

LIFE BITE: Supreme Court rules that NHS in England is not compelled to provide abortion services to NI women

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apple-150579_1280On 14th June 2017, the Supreme Court ruled that the Secretary of State for Health in England was not acting unlawfully by failing to provide NHS funding to women who travel from Northern Ireland to England to access abortions

Presently, women from Northern Ireland, except for in exceptional cases, must pay for abortion care privately, notwithstanding their status as UK citizens and (in many cases) UK taxpayers. 

This point of law was challenged in  R (A and B) v Secretary of State for Health).  The case  involved a 15-year-old girl, A, who became pregnant in 2012. A did not want to continue with the pregnancy and so with the support of her mother, B, she arranged to have a termination in England.

A and B were surprised to learn that as A was resident in Northern Ireland, she would have to pay privately for the termination in England. B commenced proceedings on behalf of her daughter to challenge the lawfulness of this policy.

A and B submitted that the Secretary of State for Health was acting unlawfully in refusing to permit women from NI to access NHS funded abortions.  They further argued that women in NI were being discriminated against as compared to other women in the UK

A and B were unsuccessful in the High Court and in the Court of Appeal and the matter was then referred to the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court held, by a 3-2 majority, that the Secretary of State was not obligated to provide abortion services to UK citizens usually resident in Northern Ireland, and was instead entitled to respect the “democratic decision” of the devolved administration in Northern Ireland and acknowledge the ability to purchase private abortions.  This position was not agreed upon by dissenting Judges Lord Kerr and Lady Hale.  Lady Hale noted ;-

“The difference in treatment by the NHS in England between women from England and women from Northern Ireland cannot be justified by respect for the democratic decisions made in Northern Ireland as to what will be provided by the NHS there”.