Latest / 360 with Katie Woolf / Sexual Assault Referral Centre Darwin Manager Prudence Boylan hopes Territorians will take part in a walk at Nightcliff this weekend to create awareness about sexual assault and abuse

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Sexual Assault Referral Centre Darwin Manager Prudence Boylan hopes Territorians will take part in a walk at Nightcliff this weekend to create awareness about sexual assault and abuse · 360 with Katie Woolf

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  Speaker 1: Our real change of pace because it's Sexual Assault Awareness
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  Speaker 1: Month and there's a walk plant for this weekend. It's
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  Speaker 1: aiming to educate people about preventing verbal and physical abuse
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  Speaker 1: as well as exploitation online and where to go for
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  Speaker 1: help if you've experienced it. Now joining me on the
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  Speaker 1: line to tell us a little bit more is Sexual
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  Speaker 1: Assault Referral Center, Darwin Manager, Prudence Boiler.
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  Speaker 2: Good morning to you, Prudence.
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  Speaker 3: Good morning Katie.
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  Speaker 1: Thanks so much for your time this morning. Prudence, firstly,
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  Speaker 1: having me no problem. Now, firstly tell us a bit
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  Speaker 1: more about this walk on Saturday.
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  Speaker 4: So we're going to be walking down at Nightcliff, so
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  Speaker 4: from the Nightcliff swimming Pool to the Sunrise Park. So
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  Speaker 4: it's quite a sunset park, sorry, Katie. It's quite a
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  Speaker 4: nice gentle stroll and with this beautiful weather we're having
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  Speaker 4: at the moment, I think it couldn't be more perfect.
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  Speaker 4: We are hoping that as many people will come out
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  Speaker 4: and join us on our walk to show their support
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  Speaker 4: and take a nice short walk on the beautiful foreshore
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  Speaker 4: and whilst also helping to get victims and survivors a voice.
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  Speaker 1: And it sounds like it's going to be a really
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  Speaker 1: great thing to do. It's obviously part of Sexual Assault
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  Speaker 1: Awareness Month as well, isn't it.
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  Speaker 4: It is definitely yes, what message sexual Assault Awareness Month
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  Speaker 4: through run throughout April, and it gives us the opportunity
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  Speaker 4: to help increase public awareness about sexual assault and abuse
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  Speaker 4: and also raise the issues regarding consents.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, well, this is a thing.
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  Speaker 1: It is, you know, like it's something that everybody needs
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  Speaker 1: to be aware of, but I think, you know, for
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  Speaker 1: those of us raising daughters and little boys, it's something
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  Speaker 1: that's really important I think to sort of be teaching
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  Speaker 1: our young ones coming up.
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  Speaker 3: I totally agree.
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  Speaker 4: And part of what we're hoping to do is start
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  Speaker 4: the conversations around the taboos and myths that surrounds that
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  Speaker 4: assault to stop a lot of and also stop a
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  Speaker 4: lot of victims from accessing the support they need. And
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  Speaker 4: we need having conversations with our children and for me,
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  Speaker 4: my grandchildren as early as possible around cyber safety, respectful relationships,
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  Speaker 4: protective behaviors, and we also need to start calling out
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  Speaker 4: bad behaviors when it's face to be able to do that.
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  Speaker 1: I'll tell you what, isn't the online stuff just a
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  Speaker 1: bit of a mind field these days?
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  Speaker 3: I really as an older woman.
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  Speaker 4: I feel very sorry for my daughter and other parents
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  Speaker 4: in this day and age where it's so easy for
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  Speaker 4: children to be accessing things, you know, very bad images
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  Speaker 4: online and it's really taking a real downward spiral.
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  Speaker 3: At the moment. It's really quite out of control.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I have the parents to.
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  Speaker 3: Be able to manage that.
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  Speaker 4: They can put locks on, but then they have access
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  Speaker 4: to computers you know, at other people's.
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  Speaker 3: Homes or phone. Yeah, it's a very tricky space work
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  Speaker 3: in that.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, you're spot on and not only you know, being
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  Speaker 1: able to access stuff, but you know, but people sharing
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  Speaker 1: images as well that you know that others haven't consented to,
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  Speaker 1: and all sorts of stuff.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, definitely, that's really on the increase at the moment.
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  Speaker 4: And I don't actually think children are aware that, you know,
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  Speaker 4: if there's a naked image taken of them or you know,
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  Speaker 4: our youth, that spreads like wildfire, it doesn't just stay
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  Speaker 4: with that one person. Once that's been put up on
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  Speaker 4: any of our apps, the multitude of apps, then.
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  Speaker 3: You know a lot of people can access that. It's
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  Speaker 3: really quite sad actually the damage that it can cause.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, now tell me how do you actually define sexual
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  Speaker 1: assault and what support is out there for people who've
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  Speaker 1: experienced it.
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  Speaker 4: I think that there's the word we normally try to
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  Speaker 4: use is sexual violence because it's such a broad term.
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  Speaker 3: Sexual assault is actually.
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  Speaker 4: A part of that, and it's any unwanted or inappropriate touching.
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  Speaker 4: But there's also the cyber safety, there's drug facilitated sexual assault,
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  Speaker 4: child abuse, sexual harassment that we see in the workplace
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  Speaker 4: and in the homes.
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  Speaker 3: So it's a very broad.
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  Speaker 4: Definition and it actually is different for every state.
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  Speaker 3: And territory, which in itself is a little bit sad.
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  Speaker 4: It'd be nice to have that overarching definition of what
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  Speaker 4: sexual abuse is. But yeah, it's really about any inappropriate,
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  Speaker 4: unwanted touching where there is not consent from that person
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  Speaker 4: to have that touching occur. So sometimes that can be
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  Speaker 4: on the outside of your clothing, you know, someone touching
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  Speaker 4: your breast or another part of your private private parts.
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  Speaker 4: So it's a very broad terminology.
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  Speaker 1: Now, prudence tell us, can anyone access SUCK and those
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  Speaker 1: services and does it cost people anything?
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  Speaker 4: No, it's a free confidential service part of the Department
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  Speaker 4: of Health, but also we are a part of the
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  Speaker 4: Royal Darwin Hospital and we have it's open to everyone
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  Speaker 4: everyone can come to our service. So I know some
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  Speaker 4: people get concerned that they don't have a Medicare card,
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  Speaker 4: or they don't have a visa appropriate visa. All of
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  Speaker 4: those things worry clients, but our client you don't have
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  Speaker 4: to have any of.
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  Speaker 3: Those things to come to us.
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  Speaker 4: You know, you just need to make one phone call
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  Speaker 4: and someone will be at the end of that phone
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  Speaker 4: to answer any questions.
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  Speaker 3: You have to listen, support and advocate for you. So yeah,
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  Speaker 3: there is no limit to.
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  Speaker 4: How many counseling sessions that our counselors give long term,
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  Speaker 4: and we also have an after hours crisis response service,
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  Speaker 4: so that's a twenty four hour response to acute sexual assault.
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  Speaker 4: But we also see people for historical sexual assault as well,
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  Speaker 4: so that's for a forensic, medical, medical management, or counseling.
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  Speaker 1: It's such important work, it really is. Are those services
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  Speaker 1: unique to the Northern Territory the SAKA. Are we the
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  Speaker 1: only place around Australia that has that or does everybody?
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  Speaker 1: Every state and territory have those similar services.
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  Speaker 3: Every state in territory has similar services.
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  Speaker 4: I think what makes our service unique is that we
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  Speaker 4: see adults and children within the same complex and we
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  Speaker 4: have counseling and medical services in the one complex. Yeah,
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  Speaker 4: but that's fairly unique to the territory. That's part of Alice.
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  Speaker 4: Springs have the same service, and we have other services
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  Speaker 4: in Catherine and Tenant Creek where counseling is available and
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  Speaker 4: we are working on improving the medical.
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  Speaker 3: Side of those services.
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  Speaker 4: So we also in goths now have some very skilled,
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  Speaker 4: trained doctors working in the hospital that will see adult clients,
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  Speaker 4: and we do in Catherine as well, just so that
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  Speaker 4: people don't have to travel such long distances to get
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  Speaker 4: the appropriate treatment that they need.
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  Speaker 2: It's so important, isn't it.
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  Speaker 1: You know you can't like you can't you can't determine
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  Speaker 1: we're serious, incidents are going to happen. It is so
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  Speaker 1: important that people are able to access those services no
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  Speaker 1: matter where they are.
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  Speaker 2: Prudence, can you tell us before I let you go
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  Speaker 2: this morning?
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  Speaker 1: Just going back to that walk, how can people take part?
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  Speaker 4: They just need to turn up if they can wear
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  Speaker 4: till or we have chill ribbons that will be handing out.
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  Speaker 4: But if people have any anything with chill, which is
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  Speaker 4: the color of Sexual Assault Awareness Months, that would be great. Yeah,
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  Speaker 4: And if they turn up, we do have some placards.
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  Speaker 4: It's going to be a very quiet walk and just
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  Speaker 4: the stroll through the park, so hopefully it's not going
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  Speaker 4: to be too confrontational for anyone that comes. And please
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  Speaker 4: bring your husband's wives, children, grandchildren. Yeah, it would just
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  Speaker 4: be a nice, gentle walk through the park.
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  Speaker 2: Prudence. I really appreciate your time this morning.
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  Speaker 1: I know it is such a serious issue, but it
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  Speaker 1: is one that we do need to speak about and
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  Speaker 1: one that we do need to make sure that you
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  Speaker 1: know that victims are aware of the supports that are
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  Speaker 1: available to them out there. So I really appreciate your
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  Speaker 1: in a chat with me this morning.
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  Speaker 3: Thank you very much for having me on. I really
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  Speaker 3: appreciate the time to be able to talk.
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  Speaker 2: Thank you, Pruden.