‘Just Say Goodbye’ (January 2013 online edition)

‘Just Say Goodbye’Conclusion: The killing of children as a form of violenceagainst women‘I left him and the children have paid’. 103The cases explored in this chapter show that some filicides by fathers can alsobe a form of violence against women. In many of these cases, separation appearsto be a key triggering factor in the events that led to the children’s deaths.Several fathers express anger towards their ex-partners about the separation,and a desire for revenge, to punish them for leaving and for breaking up thefamily. In this context the children are used to hurt their mothers.Regardless of whether or not it was preceded by a history of intimate partnerviolence, the killing of the children could be seen to constitute an act of intimatepartner violence when the intention is to harm the mother.In most of these cases there was no indication of prior violence againstthe children. In most cases there was prior violence or controlling behaviourtowards the mother. While the mother may fear for the safety of her children,there appears to be a lack of awareness by professionals and agencies involvedin these cases that the children are at risk in this context. The link betweenviolence against women and risks to children does not appear to be adequatelyrecognised.103 A quote from the mother whose children were killed by Phithak Kongsom (Poulson 2008). See the case outlinedin this chapter.63