menshealthaustralia.net

 Scotland: domestic violence against men is frequent and often unreported

The results of a major piece of government research on partner abuse in Scotland slipped out relatively unreported before Christmas. The new Scottish findings mirror much Australian and international domestic violence research showing family violence against men is frequent and often goes unreported. The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey 2008-09: Partner Abuse was published by Scotland's Chief Statistician on December 15th 2009. The research was conducted with 16,000 interviewees and represents the most comprehensive investigation to date into the extent of partner abuse in Scotland.

 Plastic chemicals 'feminise boys' (US)

Chemicals in plastics alter the brains of baby boys, making them "more feminine", say US researchers. Males exposed to high doses in the womb went on to be less likely to play with boys' toys like cars or to join in rough and tumble games, they found. The University of Rochester team's latest work adds to concerns about the safety of phthalates, found in vinyl flooring and PVC shower curtains. The findings are reported in the International Journal of Andrology. Phthalates have the ability to disrupt hormones, and have been banned in toys in the EU for some years. However, they are still widely used in many different household items, including plastic furniture and packaging. There are many different types and some mimic the female hormone oestrogen. The same researchers have already shown that this can mean boys are born with genital abnormalities. Now they say certain phthalates also impact on the developing brain, by knocking out the action of the male hormone testosterone.

 Anti-violence campaign hails attitude shift on violence against males

More than twice as many people now think women are just as likely to commit domestic violence as men. Over the past fourteen years, the number has risen from 9 to 22 percent of the population and a further 46 percent now accept women also commit acts of domestic violence, although this group still believes men commit the majority of abuse. The findings come from a survey of more than 10,000 Australians commissioned by the Federal Government and released last week by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to mark White Ribbon Day. The survey also found that 38 per cent of males and 46 per cent of females thought the level of fear experienced by domestic violence victims was the same for males and females. One in Three Campaign spokesperson Greg Andresen said he was very pleased to see that Australian community beliefs about violence were falling into line with the research statistics on the issue.

 New campaign to help abused men launched on International Men's Day

As part of the 2009 International Men’s Day celebrations, a new campaign for male victims of family violence is being launched. The One in Three Campaign is named after the little known fact that up to one in three victims of sexual assault and at least one in three victims of family violence is male (perhaps as many as one in two). The campaign aims to raise public awareness of the existence and needs of male victims of family violence and abuse; to work with government and non-government services alike to provide assistance to male victims; and to reduce the incidence and impacts of family violence on Australian men, women and children.

The One in Three website can be found at oneinthree.com.au.

 Murdered toddler craved his mother's love

Before she murdered her two-year-old son, Rachel Pfitzner used to lock him out of the house. Every week their neighbours in Rosemeadow saw Dean Shillingsworth pounding on the glass doors, pleading to be let in. ''Mummy, Mummy, I am sorry,'' the banished toddler would cry. She hit him when he wet himself or took leftover food, his hunger driving him from bed at night to look for scraps. She yelled at him constantly. But Dean kept craving his mother's love. According to prosecutors, ''even though he was frequently being punished by his mother, Dean was constantly seeking affection from her''. She saw this as ''overly clingy''. Her fuse grew even shorter. She murdered Dean on October 11, 2007, the same day a court ordered that Dean be returned to the care of his paternal grandmother, Ann Coffey.

 Music teacher jailed for student sex

A former Ballarat teacher will spend Christmas behind bars for having sex with two students. Michelle Lynn Dennis, 33, had sex with the boys, aged 14 and 17, while employed as a music teacher at Ballarat High School. The County Court at Ballarat heard that Dennis sent more than 1300 text messages to the students over a two-year period. She also sent one of the boys naked pictures of herself and invited one of his friends to have a threesome with them. Dennis pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual penetration of a child under supervision and one count of sexual penetration of a child under 16. She was convicted and sentenced to four years and three months' jail, with a minimum of two years and 10 months to serve.