The WA Government has encouraged the Western Australian community to get involved in community debate about the pattern of destructive family violence known as coercive control.
Attorney General John Quigley and Prevention of Family Violence Minister Simone McGurk have announced a community consultation process relating to coercive control, which will run until July 30.
The community will be asked to consider whether coercive control should become a criminal offence, or whether it can be better dealt with by other means.
Commissioner Kati Kraszlan said it was timely for WA people to consider the issue.
"This type of behaviour is not unique to WA, and is being encountered across Australia and no doubt in many other countries too. “To get the right response for WA, we need to know what the community wants in relation to coercive control."
"We have put together some materials with ideas about what people might want to address in their responses. They include a discussion paper and a fact sheet."
The public comment period on the pattern of family violence behaviours known as coercive control has now closed. Thank you to all those who took part in the consultation process. Submissions received will now be reviewed in detail.