WOMEN’S LIVES UNDER THREAT
Specialist agency to double refuge spots But campaigners warn it is not enough
CAMPAIGNERS have called for an urgent rethink of the Government’s strategy to tackle domestic violence, warning women’s lives are at risk.
Cuan aims to double the number of refuge spaces by 2026 – but Justice Minister Helen Mcentee has admitted it may fall short of its target.
The newly-established agency is already under fire because that target of 280 spaces is at least 200 less than required under the Istanbul Convention.
It comes as a Europe-wide study shows more than 14,000 women were murdered between 2012 and 2022 – with almost 100 femicides in Ireland.
They include young mums Nadine Lott, killed by her ex Daniel Murtagh, and Jennie Poole, killed by her boyfriend Gavin Murphy.
Ainie Grainger, who runs Stop Domestic Violence in Ireland with her mother Priscilla, warned of an alarming rise in domestic violence.
She told the Irish Sunday Mirror: “At present we are seeing a massive rise in men, women and children reaching out to us for help.
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“The first question a victim will always ask us is ‘where do I go’ and ‘how do I keep my children safe?’
“They typically tell us ‘I’ve rang every refuge and they’ve told me they are completely full’.
“It’s heartbreaking to hear that someone in an abusive situation may not have a choice but to stay in the home where their abuser is also living.
“They may not have any family that can take them in or support them.
“It’s a lonely place when you feel you cannot protect your children because you have nowhere to go.”
Ainie said SDVII worked with victims who have to wait an average of six months for a court date to secure a safety order.
She said: “The gardai need to be given more powers. Not every victim has grounds for a barring order which would remove the perpetrator from the family home.
“Perpetrators will continue to abuse not only their spouse and children but the legal system because they know the victim has nowhere to go so they use the control tactic against them.”
Launching the new domestic violence agency, Cuan, Minister Mcentee raised doubts over whether its targets can be met by 2026.
She said: “We will of course be ambitious... but we have to be realistic in terms of what we can achieve between now and the end of 2026. The objective is
It’s a lonely place when you feel you cannot protect your children
to double the number of refuge spaces that we have.
“We are making good progress.”
There are currently just 141 spaces available across Ireland, and not in every county, according to Tusla.
Labour’s justice spokesman Aodhain O Riordain called out Minister Mcentee and warned our
position remains “grossly inadequate”. He said: “We have failed victims of domestic violence who – in wealthy prosperous Ireland in 2024 – still have nowhere to go.
“Victims of domestic violence deserve better than inadequate measures that leave them vulnerable and unprotected.”
Cuan – an Irish word meaning a safe haven or harbour – aims to promote a “zero tolerance” approach to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. But with more than 54,000 complaints of domestic violence received by the Garda National
Protective Services Bureau in 2023, campaigners warn more needs to be done. Ainie warned: “Although we agree with Minister Mcentee in that we need to be realistic, we also need to be realistic about how many more victims will continue to stay with their abusers because there aren’t enough refuges in Ireland.
“In 2024 this is simply not good enough.”