Guest Blog by Victoria Hudson
I Just wanted to say an enormous Thank You to everyone who co-signed our letter to Robert Buckland QC MP asking for redress of unsafe decisions made in light of the Family Court Review.
Some of you will know me from my campaign #GetMHome and some will have followed my journey so far to try to gain justice.
For those who haven’t yet come across my campaign, I’ll give you the background.
I found myself in the Family Courts in 2017, after a horrendous 2 years of fighting a losing battle where admitted abuse by the perpetrator was ignored, minimised and then blamed on me, my daughter was removed from my care and given to the perpetrator for reasons we have seen time and time again in the Family Courts. The horrific removal video was placed online by a witness and through this I gained the support of many prominent domestic abuse campaigners, commissioners, celebrities, charities and MPs.
I told my story publicly in March 2019 and in April 2019 the Parental Rights (Rapists) and Family Courts Bill 2017-19 was put into Parliament by Louise Haigh MP for an independent inquiry into Family Courts and highlight what domestic abuse victims and their children go through in the secret family court system. The Ministry of Justice agreed that a review into the Family courts was needed.
I continued campaigning and risked my liberty speaking out, I was threatened with prison, injunctions were placed on me, but I still kept speaking out as nothing was changing.
In June 2020 the Family Court Review came out, we were all vindicated! Everything we said was happening in the draconian system was published in the report.
So, my daughter can come home, right?
My case was raised in Parliament, printed in the media several times, Baroness’ (who sit in the House of Lords) support. I was asked to take part in the Ministry of Justice Focus Group with Womens Aid, as part of the Ministry Of Justice review. Everything I explained that happened in my case was evidenced in the review by many others, a major overhaul of the Family Courts was instructed!
So, my daughter can come home now, right?
No, nothing had been put in place for all the cases they got wrong. All the children who have gone before this review and all the cases currently still going through Family Court are still receiving the same barbaric, cruel treatment.
Children are still being forced to attend unsafe contact and those children who raised abuse while visiting those parents (who were then removed from the safe parent to the abuser) are still there.
So those children may still have 10/15 years of abuse, the safe parent mentally tortured watching them go through it
There is no redress on any of these cases?
In response to this I set up my new campaign Justice For Family Court Children #JusticeForFCchildren asking for 2 things;
1. Unsafe contact orders to be made safe.
2. Any children removed from the safe parent to the perpetrator to be brought home to the safe parent
#thecourtsaid wants the same thing, recourse on these cases, so we decided to join forces.
Natalie Page and I drafted the open letter together for Robert Buckland QC MP.
The letter was published on 21/8/2020 and can be found here
Now, this is where we ask for your help.
We ask for every single parent and child (who is old enough) to write to your MP, ask them to lobby the Justice Minister Robert Buckland and put something in place for justice for our children, for us It may take a little time out of your life, but it may stop thousands of victims of abuse being put through more state sanctioned abuse through the Family Courts
You may not even have been affected directly, but if it is a friend, a relative, a co-worker, please also write…..we need an army……we need you!
Victoria Hudson
If anyone would like to follow my campaign I can be found at www.facebook.com/getmhome and Twitter: @victoria_hudson
#thecourtsaid 