Camilla urges ‘pull back the shroud of silence’ surrounding domestic violence
THE Duchess of Cornwall urged people to speak about domestic violence today at a reception for survivors of such abuse.
Camilla spoke out as she was joined by celebrity campaigners including actors Sir Patrick Stewart and Julie Walters and singers Alesha Dixon and Jamelia Davis at the Clarence House reception.
She told guests, including politicians and police: "Domestic abuse remains a hidden problem in our society.
“It is characterised by silence - silence from those who suffer, silence from those around them and silence from those who perpetrate abuse.
“This silence is corrosive – it leaves women, children - and men - carrying the burden of shame, it prevents them from speaking out about their abuse and it prevents them from getting help. And at its worst, it can be fatal."
Camilla, 68, who earlier this year met survivors of domestic violence and the friends and relatives of those who had been killed, described them as "some of the bravest women I have been privileged to meet".
I hope we can talk about what is happening behind closed doors across the country
"Their silence was broken - but only after a tragedy. I hope very much that today might mark a moment when we start to pull back that shroud of silence," she said.
"I hope we can talk about what is happening behind closed doors across the country and I hope that these brave people have the courage to speak out and to be, in the words of one of our guests, 'victors not victims'."
Camilla praised the BBC Radio 4 soap The Archers for portraying the problem through the relationship of characters Helen and Rob Titchener. Actress Louiza Patikas, who plays Helen, was among the guests.
Another guest was Rachel Williams, who suffered 18 years of violence from husband Darren.
When she filed for divorce, he shot and beat her before committing suicide. Their devastated 16-year-old son Jack took his own life six weeks later.
She said: "It's massively important for the Duchess to speak out and be a voice for us. It's incredible. It's raising awareness.
"The problem is not going away until the government addresses the problem. They should listen to the voices of the victors (ie victims). There should be tougher sentences.”
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Sir Patrick Stewart, who witnessed his father's violence against his mother and is now Patron of the charity Refuge, said: "People believe - they have the mistaken sense - that domestic violence only happens in rundown council flats or in bad estates somewhere, it's a working-class problem - angry, drunken, violent men.
“Not at all. It is across all society. No matter education, income, environment, quality of life, class, the work that you do, it is everywhere. “But it is the great unspoken problem, which the Duchess mentioned."
Alesha Dixon, who also witnessed domestic violence as a child and now works with Refuse and Women's Aid, said people were reluctant to talk about it.
"Like Camilla so eloquently said, silence is the word that surrounds it and so we're trying to encourage people to speak out more because that's the only way that women and men are going to feel confident to come forward and not suffer alone.
"It's really important having the Duchess adding her voice to raise awareness - it's just constantly reminding people that there are people in high places who care, there are people working to help."
After the reception Camilla joined Commonwealth Secretary General Baroness Scotland at the Commonwealth Women's Leaders Summit on violence against women and girls in nearby Marlborough House.
Camilla told delegates: "I feel very privileged to meet people like you and you just hope that with all this going on, one of these days there will be an end to it."
She said she was "thrilled" to be involved in raising awareness, adding: "I just hope I have done some good."