Sir, - As a family law practitioner in this jurisdiction for the past 20 years, I was astounded by John Waters's "revelation" (Opinion, September 4th) that men and women suffered equally from domestic violence. After dismissing all facts and studies from the "domestic violence industry", he suddenly claims: "every independent study has found that domestic violence is roughly a 50-50 phenomenon". Where are these studies? Court Records, police statistics and practitioners' experience point to the opposite.
Of the considerable case work we have handled in the past 20 years, no more than 2 per cent were men seeking protection. On the contrary, I have witnessed at close hand the suffering, fear and anguish of women and children who have had to flee their homes due to the actions of a violent partner. Let Mr Waters be under no illusion on this point. Frankly, his article was trite and extremely offensive to the many victims of domestic violence in both jurisdictions on this island. - Yours, etc.,
John McGettrick, Solicitor, Clarence Street, Belfast.