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Australian Men's Rights Advocates - AustralianMRA

CSA booed and jeered!

A report from an observer who attended a Child Support Agency Information Meeting held at the Camden Civic Centre on Thursday evening February 1, 2001.

Anyone who doubts whether the Child Support Agency is a deeply despised institution should have attended the public information night the Agency held at Camden Civic Centre.

What was telling about the irate crowd of more than 150 citizens was not only that it was roughly equally divided between men and women, but across a pretty broad social spectrum. All they had in common was they loved their children and hated the CSA. From the man who was told not to use so much petrol driving to work to the second wife who wants to know why her children are worth nothing while the CSA drives her husband to the wall.

The two-hour meeting began with an information session, which most people could have done without. A Legal Aid lawyer, Jane Weber, who did not get a good reception, proudly announced that they now had millions of more taxpayer dollars to play with, and then freely acknowledged that they usually only fund the payee parents, in other words women against men in most instances!

The first man to ask a question said he found the CSA's slogan "helping parents manage their responsibilities very demoralising after first being ripped off by the Family Court. He was roundly applauded. Agency Manager, Karina Murray and a panel of bureaucrats struggled to answer questions on why the Agency has taken it compensation policy off its web site or why it refuses to comply with the latest and most thorough analysis on the costs of children.

Just because you have laws and procedures doesn't mean they are actually fair," said one dad.

The meeting went rapidly downhill for the CSA. One man repeatedly described them as "reprehensible" was loudly applauded by both men and women alike.

Child Support just doesn't care", said one mother.

There were a string of moving stories; the Agency threatening to sell people's assets; the struggle of bringing up children; the crippling of small businesses as a result of huge financial imposts.

John Fahey, Minister for Finance unable to attend sent his assistant. Saying she understood that "there are men who are desperate" Fahey's assistant took extensive notes and promised to report the contents of the meeting to John Fahey and Larry Anthony.

The second wives were particularly vocal. "Let these people get on their feet," said one. "I carry my partner so he can have a life."

Another man shouted "You people don't live in the real world. Can't you see these people are hurting?"

The Agency once again refused to release the statistics on how many of its clients are dying or suiciding, believed to be in the order of 3 a day. It's a simple question, of the 33,000 people who exit the scheme each year, how may are doing so in a coffin?

The CSA's refusal to release this figure, a vital piece of information which would tell us a great deal about the state of family law in Australia today is a scandal.

Domestic Violence - Male Victims

BBC - The One Show on Male Victims of Domestic Violence

Video BBC The One Show on Male Victims of Domestic Violence - Woman assaulting man - Domestic Violence

BBC programme 'The One Show', in which the subject of domestic violence against men is discussed.

September, 2009

UK - not politically correct to fund shelters for men and their children who are victims of domestic violence.

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Child Support

Australian Government's assault on Separated Fathers

In July 2008, the media published banner headlines generated from media releases issued by the Australian Government's Minister for Human Services, Senator Joe Ludwig which includes:

Spies on dads dodging child support - Herald Sun, 23 June 2008,
"Human Services Minister Joe Ludwig announced today that undercover surveillance of parents would commence from July 1, in a bid to collect almost $1 billion in child support debt across Australia. I want child support cheats to be caught out on camera so the courts can see the truth,"

Deadbeat dads fleeing to debt-free haven - The Australian, 30 July 2008,
"Separated parents living overseas now owe around $90 million in payments to their kids back in Australia," Senator Ludwig said.

Chasing down deadbeat dads - Herald Sun, 1 August 2008,
Senator Ludwig also said “More than 20,000 separated parents are denying their children support by fleeing the country.

These mostly deadbeat dads owe a startling $90 million in child support and are guilty of a double betrayal.

Deadbeat dads don't need a visa to enter New Zealand and governments need to work together to identify and track down runaway parents.”

The truth

The one billion dollar debt level is a cumulative total incurred from the commencement of the child Support scheme in 1988/89. Over $500 million debt had accumulated by 1996/97. The Child Support Agency ( CSA ) has already been criticised by the Auditor General for using cumulative totals in their efforts to justify their performance.

Yet the CSA continues to do so, as well as ignoring false debts created using unsustainable or unrealistic income determinations. Neither can the accuracy of assessments be thoroughly checked when address details for 15% of clients cannot be confirmed. If the information were available it would be interesting to know how much of this debt is uncollectable because the payer is unemployed, disabled or deceased or the child’s circumstances have changed, but remain unacknowledged by CSA?

According to published CSA data, 96 per cent of all child support due has been paid.

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Add Mandatory DNA Paternity testing to the Mandatory Newborn Screening Tests.

Daddy dearest: Many men are finding out they are not the father after all

The Sun-Herald
18 November 2007

Men's groups are calling for mandatory paternity testing of all newborns as it emerges a record number of men are finding they are not the fathers of children they believed to be theirs.

Almost a quarter of paternity tests conducted by one of Australia's largest DNA laboratory companies show the man submitting a sample is not the father, compared to an estimated one in 10 "exclusions" 10 years ago.

The number of tests taken in Australia has doubled from 3000 in 2003 to more than 6000 last year.

Read more ..