A cat and a stance against domestic violence

Save the Family Cat – help take a Stance against Domestic Violence.

Goal
I am putting this funding campaign together to help a very dear friend of mine in Singapore. For her own safety and protection, we will go by the name T.

T needs financial support to help fight a legal case regarding the ownership of the family cat. All funds raised will be used towards the current legal case and to bring the main domestic abuse case to court without any further delays. Any balance of money left over will be donated to :

• Society Against Family Violence
https://www.giving.sg/society-against-family-viole...

• Family Violence is a Community Matter
https://www.giving.sg/marymount-centre/family_viol...

Back Story - Domestic Violence
T has been subject to domestic violence and the Singapore legal system is simply not equipped to protect abused and vulnerable women.

It was a slow and painful realization that something was not right. She was alienated from her friends and family. He took control of every facet of her life. Fear and anxiety soon set in. What started off as "normal" relationship, quickly turned into heated disagreements, gaslighting, abusive verbal behaviour and physical violence. The end result was multiple police interventions, but no charges were laid, even on behalf of the state.

Between June 2018 and March 2019, T was verbally and physically abused despite multiple calls to the authorities. Once the abuser was removed from their apartment, effectively ending the relationship, she was stalked by him on several occasions. She was stalked at her residence, public venues and at work. Despite the police being called on all of these occasions the abuser had the audacity to break into T’s residential apartment this past New Year’s Eve. The police were called in yet again, and nothing to this day has been resolved. She lives in fear and the abuser is walking free.

T filed a Magistrate’s complaint in February 2021 for a protection order against her abuser which after three months, is still pending with no tangible action taken by the “system”.

Regarding the abuse and break-in, it is currently up to the state to charge him. Yet again, we are all waiting on the “system” to take action while the victim lives in fear with little repercussions for the abuser.

Current Case –Save the Cat
T, her daughter V and their cat are an expat family living in Singapore. T and V obtained the cat in 2018 - with proof of the transaction and the abuser was not involved in the procurement of the cat. The cat is V’s cat and he has been a loving member of their little family since the day he was brought home.

Over the course of the relationship, T’s ex did many unscrupulous and conniving things aside from the domestic abuse and harassment. Most notably he visited the veterinary clinic with V for the cat's chip registration – only to put his name as the official owner as means to deceive and control T.Since their separation, T’s ex has deployed legal means to take the cat away from T and her daughter V.

Taking custody of the cat was a tactic to seek revenge on T. Smoke and mirrors to mask the true horrors of the domestic abuse case - a strategic and expensive distraction from the core matter at hand.

Sadly, litigation in Singapore is extremely expensive and T’s ex has deep pockets.

To date, over SGD 9,000 has been spent by T to save her cat. A court date to plea the case in state courts is set for July 1st. T’s lawyers estimate another SGD 9,000 to 12,000 will be spent before the matter is closed.

The Ask
I realize we are living in a trying period during this COVID pandemic, and we all have many more important things to focus on. So I apologise if this public requests comes at a difficult time. We are honourably and unashamedly seeking justice. If any of this story resonates with you on any level, be it from your own past experience or sympathy for what T is going through, we are asking if you can spare any change. All money will be used to cover legal costs to help T keep her beloved little family together and to give her a fighting chance to bring her abuser to face the domestic violence charges against him.