Australian Men's Rights Advocates - AustralianMRA
Justice system let me down
Illawarra Mercury, Australia, by Michele Tydd, December 18, 2010. Section: News, Page: 5
AN Austinmer father says he is angry and bewildered by a judge's comments to brand him a sook for going to police after his former partner assaulted him in front of their eight-year-old son.
Judge Paul Conlon upheld Tanya Austin's appeal over a lower court conviction for the assault and said police should have told Martin Mondzheyovsky to "man up".
"What really concerns me is the way the judge trivialised a clear-cut case of domestic violence and belittled me for reporting the assault," Mr Mondzheyovsky said yesterday.
"I'm a law-abiding citizen and believe in women's rights, but I also believe men are entitled to the same protection when it comes to this sort of thing."
The organisation Dads in Distress (DID) has come out in support of Mr Mondzheyovsky and described Judge Conlon's comments as "appalling".
DID western Sydney co-ordinator Phil York said, in his opinion, Judge Conlon's comments "send a clear message to society [that] men who report domestic violence to police are wimps".
In Wollongong Local Court in October, Ms Austin, 35, pleaded guilty to assaulting Mr Mondzheyovsky and said she became resentful when her former partner told her how much he had enjoyed a surfing holiday to Bali while she was struggling to raise their son.
She told Magistrate Les Mabbutt that Mr Mondzheyovsky paid little support, although yesterday he strongly denied this.
She admitted to repeatedly poking him in the face and throwing the full plastic bottle of tonic water which struck him in the face.
"You have given a number of excuses ... but you lost your temper and violence is never the answer," Mr Mabbutt said.
He rejected her plea to not record a conviction and also placed her on a 12-month good behaviour bond.
At the appeal hearing earlier this month, Judge Conlon scoffed at the notion Mr Mondzheyovsky was "trembling and crying" as a result of "being struck by a plastic bottle".
"Oh, boo hoo. The bloke should have been told by police to man up," he said.
"She has really been left with the total responsibility of bringing up their child. She receives little financial support [from him] ... [and yet] he decided to take himself off on a wonderful surfing holiday and then told her all about it."
Judge Conlon said it was an "easy case" for him to throw out, and added that the fact Mr Mondzheyovsky had the temerity to even call police after the incident was very telling of his character.
He apologised to Ms Austin for being charged in the first place and dismissed the matter.
Mr Mondzheyovsky, 40, a floor sander, said he had had to be convinced by family to report the assault but he felt better for having done so.
"The judge's comments were upsetting, but I'm more disappointed that the process has let me down and flagged for other men in my situation that they are less of a man to turn to the system for help.
"Police were great, the magistrate got it right and then things fell apart in the higher court when I wasn't even given the chance to address the court on the financial claims [raised by Ms Austin], or why I was crying at the time.
"I had been attacked in front of my son who was distressed and crying, and I just had to take it to prevent the situation from escalating any further, so yes, of course I was upset.
"One of my main concerns is that my son will learn all the wrong things from it ... that men are only men if they sit there and take the abuse, or worse turn into a perpetrator himself."
Mr Mondzheyovsky said the other thing the court failed to touch on was ensuring his former partner addressed her violence.
"She is my son's prime carer and I love him to the end of the earth, so yeah, that's what is weighing on my mind right now."
Mr Mondzheyovsky is considering taking the matter further with the help of DID.
Mr York said this issue had attracted national attention on the Men's Rights Agency website.
"This affects more men than people think," Mr York said.
"I have examples within all my groups of men who have been both physically and mentally abused in their relationships.
"However, this is the first I've seen where a court has overturned a previous decision in regards to being a victim of domestic violence, particularly when the woman has pleaded guilty.
"A number of men throughout Australia have responded to this case on the website and the overwhelming theme that runs through all the comments is despair that their pain is so under-valued."
Biological Mothers Murder More of Their Own Children Than Do Biological Fathers
Australian Institute of Criminology statistics show there were 270 child homicide incidents in Australia from July 1989 to June 1999, involving 287 identified offenders and resulting in the deaths of 316 children under 15.
For example, the revised National Homicide Monitoring Program 2006-07 Annual Report states 11 homicides involved a biological mother and 5 involves a biological father.
The Western Australian figures shed light on who is likely to abuse children in families. Mothers are identified as the perpetrator of neglect and abuse in a total of 73% of verified cases.
Biological mothers account for about 35 per cent of all child murders, while biological fathers account for 29 per cent
Family Courts’
Violence Review
October 2009
The Attorney-General commissioned a review of the practices, procedures and laws that apply in the federal family law courts in the context of family violence. The Family Courts Violence Review considered whether improvements could be made to ensure that the federal family law courts provide the best possible support to families who have experienced or are at risk of violence.
Men's Rights Agency Reply to the Family Courts Violence Review
Dr Phil TV Show - Men's Rights
September 2021
Dr Phil mixes both the mainstream men's rights advocates and a nutcase guy looking for publicity to make men look bad to create a controversial and ridiculous show to attract an audience of mainly middle aged non-working women who watch TV in the afternoons.
Advertisers love such controversial shows aimed at women who control over 80% of household spending. The more ridiclous some person on the show is, the better the ratings. Dr Phil is the upscale Jerry Springer. These shows really insult the intelligence of women.
In the show, Dr. Phil, who is no longer registered as psychologist, admits that all of his show management are females as are 90+% of his staff.
The show does have the "Martin Luther King" of the Men's Rights Movement - Warren Farrell. It also has Cassie Jay of The Red Pill documentary fame. Jerry Cox who was falsely accused of rape and kidnapping by a woman is featured. He had the ridiculous charges dropped and successfuly sued the woman.
Do men get a rough deal?
National Times
January 11, 2011
Seems a bit rich these days to claim there is a ‘‘glass ceiling’’ for female jobs. Load of cobblers, isn't it? I mean, Australia has a female Prime Minister and a female Governor-General.
Has there really been discrimination over the years against mothers who work -- or against women without children?
The National Council of Women thinks so and no surprise there. I recently chatted with Victorian leader Jennie Rawther who pointed out that, among other things, women at the end of World War 1 had to give up their jobs to returning servicemen -- even though their husbands may have been killed in combat. There was no widow’s pension, nor child support.
Sounds tough but Age reader Steve Hills of Rosebud is not impressed. “There is overwhelming evidence that female health, safety and female lives were held as more valuable than men’s lives,” he says. “Men’s lives were routinely regarded as disposable. The view that women alone were discriminated against is an ignorant one.”