Archer’s Office Picketed Over Jari’s Law

Bereaved mother Faith Tkalac is picketing Elise Archer’s office until she can have a meeting with the Attorney-General to discuss Tkalac’s proposed ‘Jari’s Law’.

Tkalac – mother of  Jari Wise who was struck dead on a Huonville roadside by a car driven by his girlfriend – says it’s time to start supporting male victims of domestic violence.

“We’re sort of raised to think that domestic violence against men is okay,” she said. “For instance, you see in a movie, a female throw a glass of wine in a man’s face and slaps him in the face, and that’s funny. We all have a bit of a giggle. Flip that around and you saw a man do the same to a woman that’d just be outright hell.”

She said she had garnered 6000 signatures in three days for a change.org petition, but that form was not suitable for submitting to parliament. She is however doing a new petition in the form required by the Tasmanian parliament.

Tkalac confirmed that Elise Archer’s office had contacted her to say they would seek to schedule a meeting for her to talk about her project, proposed law to better protect male victims of domestic violence.

“But I am going to stay here,” she said. “I’ll be back again tomorrow until close of business. And I will keep coming back until I get that date and time and have the conversation.”

Tkalac and her supporters, including her own mother, were on the picket. They had also written a number of slogans in chalk on the footpath outside the Archer’s Albert Rd office.

She has contacted politicians about the issue but said the only one who had responded in a specific way was Josh Willie, MLC for Elwick.

“No one will speak ,no one’s happy,” she said. “You get a pretty much generic ‘Thank you for your email. Thank you for your questions. We may be in touch’ reply and that’s it.”

Tkalac is also calling for a ‘Royal Commission’ (sic) into the Department of Public Prosecution, another matter she wishes to discuss with Elise Archer.

“I have a personal issue with (Director of DPP) Daryl Coates himself,” she stated. “His dealings in my son’s case was just appalling. The investigation was a whole heap of bollocks. There’s going to be a coronial inquest, and I’ll be going further with that.”

Back Story

Jari Wise, 26, died at the scene after being struck by a car in Huonville in February 2020 as he was walking along Wilmot Road.

His girlfriend Melissa Oates, 34, who was driving the car, was arrested at the scene and charged with four breaches of a police family violence order.

Oates was three times over the legal blood alcohol limit and was reportedly driving at over 100 kilometres per hour when the incident occurred in the early hours of February 29 last year.

Oates was sentenced to eight months jail in Hobart Supreme Court in April after pleading guilty to the charge of dangerous driving.