30K OR 3 YEARS JAIL TERM FOR ECONOMIC ABUSE: FPA

A person can be jailed for three years or fined for $30,000.00 if he or she is guilty of committing Economic Abuse under the Family Protection Act (FPA).

Charges under the Act defined Economic Abuse as an unreasonably controlling behaviour that denies a person financial autonomy or prevent them from taking part in decision-making over household expenditures.

Clarifying charges under the Family Protection Act, Director of Public Prosecutions Ronald Bei Talasasa told SIBC News, in a domestic relationship, a husband or wife can be charged for withholding financial support to maintain his or her family.

“If the husband has a job and earns money but doesn’t use his earning or disallow his wife to take part in decisions over household expenditures – that’s just very a crude example I am giving – or the husband withholds financial support to maintain that person or his household, that can fall under the meaning of Economic Abuse and a person can be charged for it, whether a man or woman.”

Meanwhile, the Director of Public Prosecution says, people can also be charged for Psychological Abuse if they committed this offence under the Act.

He explains the offence.

“Psychological Abuse includes insulting or ridiculing or calling names of another person whether they a wife or children which is not right, so if a person committed domestic violence then he or she can be charged for an offence and the penalties provided under the Act is an imprisonment for three years or a fine of 30,000 penalty units.”

The Family Protection Act is now in force.