We at NSPO, made up of over 100,000 family court survivor members, wholly support the contents of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls Report. Our lived experience is accurately reflected in this report on 'Custody, violence against women and violence against children' published on April 13, 2023.
Custody, violence against women and violence against children
Report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences, Reem Alsalem
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Summary: The present report of the Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences, Reem Alsalem, is submitted to the Human Rights Council pursuant to resolution 50/7. The report addresses the link between custody cases, violence against women and violence against children, with a focus on the abuse of the term “parental alienation” and similar pseudo-concepts.
This report will be presented at the UN General Assembly UN Human Rights Council Fifty-third session 19 June–14 July 2023 #HRC53 |
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"The report demonstrates how the discredited and unscientific pseudo-concept of parental alienation is used in family law proceedings by abusers as a tool to continue their abuse and coercion and to undermine and discredit allegations of domestic violence made by mothers who are trying to keep their children safe. It also shows how the standard of the best interest of the child is violated by imposing contact between a child and one or both parents and by prioritizing it, even where there is evidence of domestic violence. Predominantly as a result of the lack of training and gender bias and of access to legal support, the custody of children may be awarded to perpetrators of violence, despite evidence of a history of domestic and/or sexual abuse. The risks of such consequences are compounded for women from marginalized groups in society. The report elaborates on systemic issues that lead to additional barriers to justice. Judges and evaluators need to move away from focusing on the identification of behaviours that are contested within the discipline of psychology and towards a focus on the specific facts and contexts of each case."
Watch Press Conference Live:
Time: Jun 23, 2023 at 9:30 am ET (New York)
Human Rights Council (HRC), Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), press conference: Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls - presentation of report on child custody and parental alienation.
Subject: Engagement on global issues pertaining to violence against women and girls, including child custody issues and violence against women; will include a brief on country visits to Türkiye and Libya
Human Rights Council (HRC), Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), press conference: Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls - presentation of report on child custody and parental alienation.
Subject: Engagement on global issues pertaining to violence against women and girls, including child custody issues and violence against women; will include a brief on country visits to Türkiye and Libya
We believe it is a child's human right to live free from abuse.
We are a national coalition of more than 100,000 survivor parents and concerned citizens in the United States advocating for evidence-based policies which put child safety and risks at the forefront of child custody decisions.
We believe it is a child’s human right to live free from abuse and that child safety, which is implicit in the law, must be made the top priority in practice, in all private custody decision-making. We work with similar national coalitions across the globe, all whom are contending with the same problems we see in the U.S.: Court’s resistance to taking risks and abuse to a child seriously in the context of child access decisions.
We believe it is a child’s human right to live free from abuse and that child safety, which is implicit in the law, must be made the top priority in practice, in all private custody decision-making. We work with similar national coalitions across the globe, all whom are contending with the same problems we see in the U.S.: Court’s resistance to taking risks and abuse to a child seriously in the context of child access decisions.
OUR ADVOCATES HAVE BEEN FEATURED IN:
The Go-To Defense Tactic of Abusers in Family Court Since the 1980's
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This article outlines why we must urgently disempower the “parental alienation” terminology (and similar concepts) designed as an abuser’s weapon to minimize child abuse and domestic violence claims in court and ensure that all those in power urgently refrain from perpetuating its intentionally destructive and traumatizing legacy — and the solutions to ensure that child safety is at the forefront of custody decisions.
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