There is a loophole in Family Law that allows one parent to cutoff another parent from contact with their children also known as "Parental Alienation". This loophole is used to systematically punish the target parent. In many cases it has led to complete estrangement between the target parent and their children. To get an idea on the scale of the issue globally there are over 170 petitions here on change.org on the topic.

The current law gives godlike powers to one parent and the other parent is at their mercy. In normal circumstances logic and reason would ensure that both parents are able to contact their children without drama or interference but in family disputes logic and reason are often replaced with spite and jealousy leading to anger and violence. Hence a more balanced law would potentially have a major impact on the rate of domestic violence in relation to family disputes.  

We call upon the Government of NZ to address this imbalance and stop the cycle of abuse. 

We ask that a ministerial work group be assigned the task of assessing the changes required to close this loophole and table the new law for the Governments consideration.

 No parent or child should have to suffer because one parent has the power to declare "cease contact" unilaterally.

The Parental Right To Contact With Their Children aka "Raffertys Rule"

1. Parents have the universal right to contact their children
2. No Parent can unilaterally decide to withhold contact or declare "cease contact" on behalf of the other parent
    2a. "Cease Contact" can only be ruled by a Family court judge after official deliberation in the event of unsuccessful mediation 
3. Parental contact is a minimum of 1 hour per week by phone or digital (video/internet call)
    3a.  During contact the parent has the right to undisturbed contact with their children. i.e. The other parent cannot intervene in the call.
    3b.  During contact the parent cannot make offers to visit or meet the child in person.
    3c.  During contact the parent cannot display sensitive material or other perform acts of sexual, violent, intimidating nature
    3d.  During contact the parent has the right to schedule a new time for the next call within normal daily hours 6am - 12pm depending on age of child. 
4. In case of abuse of contact rights one parent has the right to suspend contact for a period of 4 weeks and submit a "Notice of Termination of contact rights" to the offending parent. 
    4a. "Notice of Termination" period is 4 weeks from date of notice.
    4b.  During "Notice of Termination" period the offending parent has the right to FDR Mediation with appointed counsellor for quick resolution to reestablish contact and immediate end to "Notice of Termination Period". 
    4c. If Mediation is unsuccessful the Parent who declared "Notice of Terminations" has the right to submit a "Cease Contact" procedure to the Family Court.
    4d. Notice of Termination ends if neither party submits a "Cease Contact" case to family court during the "Notice of Termination" period  (4 weeks) and Parental contact resumes as per previously agreed schedule (section 3).

From a fathers perspective, there are innumerous instances around the world of domestic violence as a result of contact disputes. Last year a father in the US was shot and killed in front of his children by the police for attempting to contact his children at their school which got out of hand quickly. In my own family I have experienced the problems as a child, step child, and father so I can fully understand the process of events that leads to such results. I know of many fathers who have been cutoff from their children across the world and often the children end up hating their fathers for abandoning them. This is often a result of the mothers influence by constant negative reinforcement over a period of years during childhood. It is a very common situation that a child harbours anger towards their father for abandoning them when in reality the father was unable to contact their children because of the mothers decision to cutoff all contact and unwilling or unable to go through the courts to attempt to resolve the issue. There is a point where it just becomes too difficult or costly.  

This issue may not seem like a big deal compared to other more high profile issues but consider that the current law was created when divorce was rare and parents generally put the children first as a social rule of thumb. In 2019 divorce and custody battles are a common occurrence and the law needs to be aware of the impact that contact disputes are having on the fabric of society. For example, a father who is unable to contact his children due to the mothers abuse of the law is a very unhappy and unproductive person. They drink, abuse drugs, are more aggressive, violent and abusive to others and  generally interact negatively in daily life.  In my opinion the overall knock on affect on society is massively under estimated. They are also more likely to become radicalized which can lead to very serious consequences for general public.  

I am very serious about this issue as I have suffered for over 30 years of trauma related to this abuse of power by one parent over another and I would like to end this not just for my own family but for all families caught in the middle of difficult, toxic family disputes. I would prefer to make progress through the official channels rather than having to create a "movement" and drum up public support to fight a years long battle in the media and public space. I am sure that a Ministerial working group on the matter can quickly find a balanced and equitable solution that is fair to all parties as the current law is completely one sided and easily abused and sticks out as a major point of conflict in Family Law..
 
My sons name is Rafferty so I propose the law change could be code named "Rafferty's Rule".