Windsor Star

Grieving mother worries province trying to stall bill

Government already has informatio­n it needs to declare an epidemic, she says

- MADELINE MAZAK

Despite Ontario's rare support of a private-member's bill declaring intimate partner violence an epidemic, the mother of a slain Windsor woman fears it might not go far enough in protecting victims.

The government plans to send the Intimate Partner Violence Act — which was co-sponsored by Windsor West MPP Lisa Gretzky — to committee for review. Only after a review would the province officially declare it an epidemic.

“I worry that it's just another tactic to stall the issue,” said Fartumo Kusow, whose 36-year-old daughter Sahra Bulle was discovered dead in a west-end woodlot last June, the day after first-degree murder charges were laid against her estranged husband.

“While I'm happy with what I would consider to be a partial victory, I'm not really sure what their motive is.”

Following a debate at Queen's Park on Wednesday, the Progressiv­e Conservati­ve government's house leader, Paul Calandra, announced the government's support for Bill 173, the Intimate Partner Violence Act, overturnin­g the government's initial rejection of the private member bill last June.

The province said at the time it would not declare intimate partner violence an epidemic because it was not an infectious or communicab­le disease.

“Indeed, the government and this caucus will be supporting the private member's bill that comes before the House later today,” Calandra said at Queen's Park on Wednesday. “In fact, we will be going a step further, Mr. Speaker … the premier has asked that we seek the advice of the standing committee on justice to do an in-depth study on all of the aspects, with respect to intimate partner violence, both the current programs that are available, some of the root causes of it, and how we can do better in the province of Ontario.”

Before the government agrees to officially declare it an epidemic, the justice committee will conduct an examinatio­n with accounts from victims, survivors and frontline agencies, and then return with recommenda­tions.

“This was a big step forward for many people in the province,” said Gretzky (NDP — Windsor West), who helped push the Intimate Partner Violence Act through.

“But what the government is trying to do now is send it to committee. I've had other bills that have been referred to committee and they've done nothing with it. I had one bill that moved forward, so there is hope. I don't want people to think there is no hope. It can happen.

“But oftentimes, that is what the government does, they send opposition members' bills to committee, and it dies there.”

Kusow said she feels the government is overlookin­g the 86 recommenda­tions that were already made in the Renfrew Report — a coroner's inquest into the murders of three women in Renfrew County by a mutual ex-partner.

Roughly 60 of those recommenda­tions, she said, fall under provincial jurisdicti­on.

“The government hasn't really looked at any of those recommenda­tions as far as I can tell,” Kusow said.

“They didn't really take what they have: the research, the reports, or the cases that they have within their grasp sitting on the desk. Instead, sending it to the committee was disappoint­ing.”

The first recommenda­tion made by the jury at the coroner's inquest was that the province declare intimate partner violence an epidemic.

If the province had declared it an epidemic on Wednesday, it would have joined the ranks of 100 municipali­ties across the province, including the City of Windsor and the County of Essex.

Last August, the federal government also called gender-based violence an epidemic in its formal response to a coroner's inquest.

In Ontario last year, at least 58 women were killed by an intimate partner who was either charged, convicted or found responsibl­e.

Since October 2021, five women in Windsor-essex have been killed by men with whom they were involved.

“I just don't know why the government is not moving forward on this,” said Gretzky, who raised the issue during question period at Queen's Park on Thursday.

“It's a very simple, but incredibly meaningful and impactful step for them to declare it an epidemic.”

 ?? MADELINE MAZAK ?? Fartumo Kusow holds an image of her daughter Sahra Bulle, who was found dead in 2023. Kusow says the province is overlookin­g research on partner violence.
MADELINE MAZAK Fartumo Kusow holds an image of her daughter Sahra Bulle, who was found dead in 2023. Kusow says the province is overlookin­g research on partner violence.

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