By Gillian Livingston, The Associated Press
Toronto, Canada (CP) -- Ontario is spending $3.5 million more a year for transitional housing and counselling services for women fleeing abusive homes and is improving training for law officials in the area of recognizing abuse.
The province also plans to spend $4.9 million over four years on a public education campaign aimed at spurring communities to help break the cycle of violence.
The funding was welcomed by women’s groups who hope that the Liberal government will quickly put forward more support for abused women in the province.
The government has to give women options to get away from violence so that “the next time a woman is being flung across the room” she knows there is help available, Community and Social Services Minister Sandra Pupatello said in the legislature Tuesday.
Premier Dalton McGuinty said these are just the first steps his government is taking to address domestic violence.
“The Ontario government will be tough on abusers -- abuse will not be tolerated,” McGuinty told the legislature.
“But it will longer focus almost exclusively on criminal justice, while neglecting the supports victims need and the prevention that must be put in place.”
The funding will go towards helping abused women move from shelters to temporary apartments that are safe and secure.
It will also provide abused women with the guidance of counsellors for six to 12 months so they can get back on their feet after leaving an abusive relationship. The counselling will cover areas such as dealing with the legal system and how to get children enrolled in new schools.
This new money reverses cuts made by the former Conservative government, which slashed $2.65 million from the transitional housing budget in 1996.
The province is also starting a pilot project to train police officers, Crown attorneys and other law officials to better assess whether a man accused of abuse will reoffend.
The Ontario Domestic Assault Risk Assessment tool was developed to respond to the recommendations of several inquests into the deaths of women at the hands of an abuser, including the June 2000 death Gillian Hadley, 25, at the hands of her estranged husband.
“We think it’s a terrific step forward,” said Beverley Wybrow, executive director of the Canadian Women’s Foundation.
The foundation continually hears from abused women “that it’s very difficult to rebuild your life after experiencing violence and women need support,” she said.
Eileen Morrow, coordinator for the Ontario Association of Interval and Transition Houses, said about 25 provincial programs lost their funding for counselling under the previous government and while the restoration of that funding is a positive move, more needs to be done quickly.
“We have a lot of work to do in the province of Ontario to respond to violence against women,” she said.
“We’re hoping to see a bigger commitment in the upcoming budget.”
As part of the plan the province will host a conference on domestic violence for experts to share knowledge on preventing violence and providing support to abuse victims.
“We know from tragic experience that we must do a better job of intervening early to protect women and children before it’s too late,” McGuinty said.
“We need to continue to work together to fight domestic violence.”