Good afternoon. Thank you for this opportunity to address the committee on behalf of Peterborough Police and its victim services unit.
Research has shown that violent crimes like intimate partner violence have long-lasting psychological, physical, social and economic impacts, not solely on the primary victim but on children, extended family members, neighbourhoods, schools, workplaces and the general safety and well-being of communities.
In recent years, police services across this country, like Peterborough Police, have committed themselves to becoming more trauma-informed with their investigations, collaborating in a more fulsome way with their community partners through committees and round tables, and committing to prevention education in school when it comes to healthy relationships.
What we know, based on decades of research on relational trauma, is that victims who experience intimate partner violence in the home as a child have a much higher likelihood of experiencing future victimization, such as polyvictimization and intergenerational trauma, mental health issues, addiction, risk of suicide and many other physical health issues such as cancer, obesity or heart disease. We also know that individuals and families who are indigenous, racialized, LGBTQ or experiencing other forms of marginalization, such as homelessness, poverty, addictions and living in remote communities, have additional barriers to healing.
What do we do with this knowledge?
The recommendation that we are respectfully putting forward to this committee is the reinstatement of a federal victim compensation program. Victims' needs for reconstructing their lives have been articulated in the research as fourfold—financial, physical, emotional and social—and we argue that victim compensation can address all of those. In fact, victim compensation is and always has been a symbol of our collective social response to the violence experienced by victims.
A report published in 2021 by the Office of the Federal Ombudsman for Victims of Crime stated, “Compensation is a critical first step on victims’ road to recovery.”
The United Nations adopted the “Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of Power”, which provides concrete actions that every government should adopt to respect the interests and needs of victims. It is based on the best knowledge and experience from across the world to specify what must be done to provide access to justice, protection, information, assistance and reparation for victims of crime. The UN declaration stresses that “[s]tates should endeavour to provide financial compensation [through the] establishment, strengthening and expansion of national funds for compensation”. It's worth noting that Canada played a critical role in this declaration.
The Victims Bill of Rights, which was introduced by the federal government in 2015, includes many of the same topics addressed in the UN declaration; however, it fails to mention a state compensation program. Another criticism of the Victims Bill of Rights is that it failed to include a method of enforcing the rights of victims and, as such, if Canada fails to uphold them, there is no recourse.
Canada no longer meets the standards and norms set out by the UN declaration with respect to state compensation. Victims of crime in Canada have uneven access to services. Eligibility criteria for compensation vary from province to province.
Compensation programs must address medical expenses, loss of income, mental health, practical needs, safety and, most important, pain and suffering. The symbolic value of dealing with these issues through some type of compensation helps validate the commitment of society to victim assistance as a whole. Currently, only two provinces offer pain and suffering awards to victims of a crime, including intimate partner violence.
In Canada, we have just one Criminal Code, yet we have a disjointed patchwork of available services for victims. Following a trauma-informed approach, a federal victim compensation program would offer the recognition of the impact of intimate partner violence on Canadians and help pave the road in restoring a victim's value, power and dignity.
Thank you.