Australian PM bemoans violence against women
SYDNEY: Australia’s prime minister yesterday declared violence against women a “scourge” and a “national crisis”, after protests in several major cities.
Meeting state premiers, Anthony Albanese announced a raft of measures and funding to tackle “toxic male extremist views”, curb deepfake pornography and fund help for victims.
Albanese told Australians that “we all have to take responsibility” for stamping out violence.
So far this year, 28 women have been killed in the country – an average of one death every four days.
By comparison, 14 women died in the same period last year.
The deaths have sparked a reckoning, with domestic violence survivors and support services demanding stricter laws.
Albanese yesterday announced new legislation to ban deepfake pornography and additional funding for the country’s online watchdog to pilot age assurance technologies.
He also announced A$925 million (RM2.85 billion) in funding to bolster support services for those fleeing violent situations.
Domestic violence services said the announcement was a step in the right direction.
Our Watch chief executive officer Patty Kinnersly said every death reflected a woman who had been “robbed” of her future.
She welcomed the focus on online content, given the increasing role of technology in perpetuating gender violence.
“This issue must remain a priority, so that all Australian women and their children can not only live free from violence, but thrive,” she said.
No to Violence chief executive Phillip Ripper said more needed to be done to understand what drives men to be violent.
Among the deaths that have rocked the country is that of Molly Ticehurst, a 28-year-old mother who was allegedly murdered last month by her former partner after he was given bail for other serious alleged offences.
New data from the Australian government shows that between 2022 and 2023, there were 34 women killed by a former or current partner, a 28% increase from the previous year.
But last year’s figure remains one of the lowest in the 30 years of data collection.
But University of Technology, Sydney domestic violence expert Kathleen Baird said Australia’s statistics are still too high.
“One in four women will experience some form of violence in their life – that is too high,” she said. “The statistics show that the rates are much higher for Indigenous women.”
Baird said it was difficult to say what had driven this year’s spate of deaths.