Photo credit: the Guardian
This article contains references to domestic violence, abuse and child abuse!
Mali moved from Thailand to Australia to live with her partner. To her chagrin, he wasn’t the person she had hoped he would be.
Mali told SBS News that, “He tried to control who I talked to. I wasn’t allowed to have friends.”
Mali was then working in a factory.
She said, “When my first pay cheque came, he took all of it. I couldn’t use any money for myself or send anything home to my parents, even though it was my own income.”
Mali and John met when he was on holiday in Thailand. She already had two children from a previous relationship. The three of them went to Australia on a visitor visa in September 2017. They moved in with John straightaway. They married in 2018.
Mali had hoped they would have a stable and loving family life.
But John’s controlling behaviour started soon after they began living together. According to Mali, the behaviour extends to her son.
He once forced Mali’s son to eat lettuce that had been thrown into the rubbish bin. The control and verbal abuse eventually escalated into physical violence, according to Mali.
Mali’s experience is not unique. Her story comes as experts warn that gaps in Australia’s migration system can leave temporary visa holders vulnerable to such violence and with limited access to support.
Mali said her status as a migrant made her feel particularly vulnerable. She said John warned her he’d get her visa cancelled if she did not obey him.
“He told me he had written to the Department of Home Affairs asking them to remove me and my children from Australia,” she said.
Experts say such threats are common.
Professor Marie Segrave from the University of Melbourne, whose research specializes in the exploitation of irregular and temporary migrants, said perpetrators often use visa status as leverage.
Under Australian law, a sponsor cannot unilaterally cancel a partner’s visa, but this is something victims often do n ot know, she said.
Only the DHA can cancel a visa, but a sponsor can notify the department that a relationship has ended, which will spur a review and potential cancellation by the department kif no exceptions apply, giving the visa holder time to respond.
Migrants who have experienced family violence may be able to obtain a permanent Australian visa if they have applied for or hold an eligible visa and the perpetrator was their former partner or spouse, among several other provisions detailed on the DHA website.
Segrave said Australia’s migration system can unintentionally heighten risks for migrant women experiencing violence.
Source: SBS News
