People with disability, in particular women with psychosocial disability, intellectual disability and cognitive disability, experience DFV at a disproportionately higher rate compared to those who do not have disability. This higher risk of DFV is influenced by many factors, not in the least prejudice and negative stereotyping, the normalisation of disability discrimination, and the lack of accessible and inclusive disability-related systems and services.
While there is a clear link between disability and the increased risk of being a victim-survivor of DFV, there is also a link between disability and accusations of engaging in domestic family violence behaviour. In QIDAN’s experience, disability-related behaviour can sometimes be mistakenly misidentified as DFV. Furthermore, many people with disability who engage in DFV-related behaviour are also victim-survivors of DFV themselves. We acknowledge that DFV-related legislation is incredibly challenging to balance. However, while individual and community safety should be a priority, reform must also be informed by an inclusive human-rights framework and should not be in detriment of the rights of people with disability. We hope that our insights can provide new considerations on how we can work toward a safer Queensland for all.
