Psychological and emotional abuse in intimate relationships is now considered a criminal offence in Ireland
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Psychological and emotional abuse in intimate relationships is now considered a criminal offence in Ireland. On Tuesday, the Domestic Violence Act 2018 came into effect offering broader protections to individuals suffering from various forms of “coercive control” from abusive partners or spouses.
Ireland is one of the few European countries that have adopted such measures. France, England and Wales and Scotland have also listed emotional abuse and coercive control as a criminal offense.
“For too long, domestic violence has been seen primarily as physical abuse. The new offence of coercive control recognises that the effect of non-violent control in an intimate relationship can be as harmful to victims as physical abuse because it is an abuse of the unique trust associated with an intimate relationship,” said Ireland’s Minister of Justice Charlie Flanagan.
Women’s Aid, a 24-hour hotline that provides support to abuse victims in Ireland, applauded the new measures but also stressed more resources are needed for the Act to be fully realised.
“From 1st January 2019, women must feel change quickly,” said Women’s Aid director Margaret Martin.
Of the 15,833 reports of domestic abuse to Women’s Aid in 2017, 10,281 of these were emotional abuse disclosures.
Key changes in the Act:
• All partners in an intimate relationship are eligible for Safety and Protection orders, with no need of cohabitation. In practice, anybody in an intimate relationship can now apply for a Safety or a Protection order and there’s no minimum period of cohabitation required for cohabitant applicants. This would also include ex-spouses and partners.
• Forced marriages: The Act brings in a new criminal offence of forced marriage, including removing a person from Ireland for the purpose of them being forcibly married. The current legislation that enables people under 18 to marry will be repealed.
• Coercive control: Criminalises psychological abuse or controlling and coercive behaviour in an intimate relationship that causes fear of violence, or serious alarm or distress that has a substantial adverse impact on a person’s day-to-day activities.
