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Original poster

Mother jailed for failing to protect daughters from sexual abuse by their father

109 replies

DonkeySkin · 17/01/2015 13:01

In line with the thread on women being jailed in El Salvador for miscarrying, this happened in Oz recently:

www.abc.net.au/news/2015-01-17/mother-sentenced-over-abuse-of-daughters-by-their-father/6022518

Sometimes I think the world is becoming more woman-hating by the day Sad

OP posts:
TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 17/01/2015 14:34

If we jail abuse victims for this we should also be jailing all the agencies that fail to help when help is sought.

BuffytheReasonableFeminist · 17/01/2015 14:32

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

EElisavetaofJingleBellsornia · 17/01/2015 14:29

I don't think anyone is saying this woman is responsible for her husband's behaviour, Donkey, just her own. I do think it's indicative of double standards that the newsworthy story is the abuse enabler rather than the abuser, but you will struggle to excuse her behaviour entirely.

Original poster
DonkeySkin · 17/01/2015 14:19

Yes, every person has a duty of care towards their children, and no one is saying you have to feel sympathy for her.

The question is whether women with violent and sexually abusive male partners should be held criminally responsible for the violence those men commit.

Surprised (although I suppose I shouldn't really be, given how ready everyone is to blame women for EVERYTHING) that most here think they should be. Although I hope all the posters who support the jailing of women who fail to stop abusive men from hurting their children realise that it is the most traumatised, the most impoverished and marginalised women (who naturally have fewer economic, social and psychological resources to escape an abusive relationship) who will be the ones punished by the laws you are advocating.

Marjorie, note that 'performing an indecent act in front of her daughter' could have meant she was sexually assaulted by her husband in front of her daughter.

OP posts:
TooMuchCantBreathe · 17/01/2015 14:18

So long as the father serves an appropriately longer term I don't see the problem. This woman failed to protect from and actively to sexual abuse. That is a crime.

MarjorieMelon · 17/01/2015 13:56

The woman performed an indecent sexual act on her husband in front of her daughter. She didn't just stand by and allow her children to be abused she was also an abuser.

It's a very sad case and the domestic abuse obviously should be taken into account it doesn't however change the fact that the mother was guilty of allowing the sexual abuse of her children.

Gothgirl78 · 17/01/2015 13:51

The man was the abuser but every person has a duty of care to their children . No matter how hard the mother should have reported her husband. I have little sympathy with the woman.

SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius · 17/01/2015 13:13

The woman was clearly in a very abusive relationship, and a very difficult situation, but does that 100% excuse what she did? Does it 100% excuse the fact that she never made any attempt to get her children out of that situation, which she must have known was, at best, inappropriate and unhealthy?

She could have advised the children to talk to their teachers and seek help that way. Or she could have rung the police.

But maybe she was so traumatised, abused and scared that she literally couldn't do anything - we don't know enough of the facts, imo.

cailindana · 17/01/2015 13:09

I think people who stand back and let abuse happen are almost as bad as those who abuse. In fact I think there is a certain type of person who gets something (I don't know what) from facilitating abuse (perhaps relief that they're not being abused themselves? or a fucked up sense of purpose at being useful to the abuser?). I understand that this woman was in a difficult situation herself but it still stands that she knew abuse was happening and she did nothing about it. She had a duty to her children and she failed them.

My one objection is the sentence - three years is long considering some rapists only get 18 months.