Hanson a terrible choice for deputy chair of family law inquiry

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Editorial

Hanson a terrible choice for deputy chair of family law inquiry

Working out what happens to the children in a divorce is often a thankless and painful task. Only the most dispassionate and experienced judges have any chance of trying to work out what is in the best interests of all concerned.

That is why the Herald has serious concerns about the federal government’s decision to appoint One Nation leader Pauline Hanson as deputy chair of its new wide-ranging inquiry into family law.

Some will question why another inquiry is needed at all, since an inquiry into family law and domestic violence was held in 2017. Skeptics will also point out that the government has still not responded to an Australian Law Reform Commission report on family law in March.

The government argues, however, that the new inquiry will have broader terms of reference with powers to look at child support, domestic violence and family law. Fair enough.

Yet if the point is to reach a balanced conclusion, Ms Hanson is a terrible choice as deputy chairperson.

The inquiry is supposed to look at the onus of proof required to gain an apprehended violence order, the cost of the court process and claims of false evidence being used against former partners.

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Ms Hanson’s politics are extreme and random at the best of times but the specific problem here is that Ms Hanson herself says her attitude to these key questions is biased by a long-running case before the Family Law Court involving her son.

Under parliamentary privilege in July, Ms Hanson said her son had not seen his male child for five years because her former daughter-in-law had made false accusations against her son, including  that he was sexually molesting his child.

It is extraordinary that Ms Hanson has decided to talk in public about a family matter. She should explain why she thinks it is in the interests of her grandson to air both parents' accusations in public.

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Ms Hanson might argue that despite her personal situation she can keep an open mind as deputy chair but she showed in a radio interview on Wednesday that she is not waiting for the evidence before making up her mind.

She told ABC’s Radio National she was convinced that there are many  cases where parents, mostly women, were concocting false allegations of sexual abuse to prevent partners having access to their children.

She also said that it was the Family Law Court’s fault that three men were suiciding a week and a woman was being murdered each week. She seems to have plucked the statistics on male suicide out of the air, which is par for the course.

The logic of her claim that it is the Family Law Court’s fault that men are murdering women is horrifying and unacceptable. No injustice on the part of the Family Court can justify a man’s decision to commit murder.

By appointing Ms Hanson to this position, Prime Minister Scott Morrison risks seriously damaging the efforts made by his predecessor, among others, who have fought to ensure combating violence against women is a national priority. This is not an issue for personal vendettas or crusades. He should reconsider and ensure that all sides get a fair say.

  • The Herald's editor Lisa Davies writes a weekly newsletter exclusively for subscribers. To have it delivered to your inbox, please sign up here

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