Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Minister for Housing) Share this | Hansard source

International Women’s Day is an opportunity for women to celebrate and reflect on how far we have come, and how far we still have to go.

Around 100 years ago in this same House, Australia’s second Prime Minister, the Hon. Alfred Deakin MP, said:

This House testifies to the facts that after sixteen years’ experience of Woman Suffrage in various parts of Australasia and nine years’ experience in the Commonwealth, the reform has justified the hopes of its supporters.

As foreseen by its advocates, its effects have been:

1. To gradually educate women to a sense of their responsibility in public affairs.

2. To give more prominence to social and domestic legislation.

Australasian experience convinces this House that to adopt Woman Suffrage is simply to apply to the political sphere that principle of Government that secures the best results in the domestic sphere, the mutual co-operation of men and women for the individual and general welfare.

In those 100 years, the ‘mutual cooperation of men and women for the individual and general welfare’ has seen great advances in Australia, and we should be justifiably proud.

Since taking office in December 2007, the Australian government has been working hard to improve and enrich the lives of women and to support them to participate equally in all aspects of Australian life. While many women are doing well and enjoying the benefits of the enormous effort over the generations by many inspirational women in Australia and around the world, it is clear that some challenges remain. With my Office for Women, I have developed an ambitious work plan. Our agenda is modern and responds to the challenges that women of today are grappling with. The government is pursuing three key priority areas for advancing gender equality:

• improving women’s economic outcomes and financial independence;
• ensuring women’s voices are heard at all levels of decision-making; and
• reducing violence against women.

I also believe it is time to engage men on these priorities—because gender equality is the whole community’s responsibility.

The government has a strong commitment to improve economic outcomes for women. Women still earn considerably less than men over their lifetimes. They earn 84c for every dollar men earn. By the time women and men graduate from university, women are already faring less well than men, and this disadvantage widens over the life course. Women in Australia are responsible for 65 per cent of unpaid work while also steadily increasing their participation in paid work. We see too many women with too little superannuation and facing a tough outlook for their old age.

The government recognises its role in meeting this challenge and is responding. The government are working hard to deliver an industrial relations system that is fairer and more flexible for working people, including the right to request extra parental leave and flexible working conditions. We are improving the accessibility, affordability and quality of child care and have established an Office of Work and Family. The government is considering the Productivity Commission’s final report on the merits of paid maternity, paternity and parental leave and better ways to support families in addition to the employer funded schemes to which nearly half of all working women already have access. The government are considering ways to strengthen women’s human rights and are looking at the recommendations of a parliamentary inquiry into the Sex Discrimination Act 1984, as well as conducting a consultation on the broader range of human rights.

The government is committed to supporting and promoting women’s leadership. I am pleased to inform the House that Australia has witnessed impressive milestones over the last year or so. Our highest public office, the position of Governor-General, is filled by a woman. Our Deputy Prime Minister is a woman, as is the Deputy Leader of the Opposition. Three out of our seven High Court justices are women. Almost one-third of parliamentarians in Australia are women, including seven federal government ministers.

While many Australian women have achieved high office individually, or success in their individual fields, we still face challenges. That is why the government works with women and women’s organisations to promote women’s leadership and equal place in society. The network of National Women’s Alliances consults with Australian women and provides informed advice to government on policy issues important to women.

I was pleased to announce on International Women’s Day at the Women’s World Cup cricket tournament that I am not only continuing a partnership between the Office for Women and the Australian Sports Commission to help produce future women leaders in sport but also increasing Office for Women funding to the Sports Leadership Grants for Women Program to $350,000 in 2009-10.

The Indigenous Women’s Leadership Program continues to be a successful program, and the Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs has tasked a steering committee to oversee the establishment of a national Indigenous representative body, which will have strong representation of both Indigenous women and men.

Australia’s accession to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) came into force last week. Australia’s accession to the optional protocol sends a strong message that we are serious about promoting gender equality and that we are prepared to be judged by international human rights standards.

Last week I was privileged to lead Australia’s delegation to the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women and report to more than 190 countries on Australia’s progress on gender equality. I was honoured to share the stage with the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, during the UN’s International Women’s Day event to inform member states of Australia’s work to reduce violence against women.

The government also supported June Oscar and Emily Carter, from Fitzroy Crossing in Western Australia, to show a documentary, Yajilarra, which is their inspiring story of reducing domestic violence, foetal alcohol syndrome and other alcohol related harm through the introduction of alcohol restrictions in their community.

I am grateful to the Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick, and her staff, and to Australia’s Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, the Hon. Robert Hill, and his staff for their assistance in promoting a successful event that was very well received by Commission on the Status of Women delegates. The government is committed to practical support for the rights of women, including backing Indigenous women to take control of the problems caused by alcohol in their communities.

Australia’s reputation is boosted by our work at home and in our region to improve gender equality. Australia’s development assistance program recognises the importance of gender equality in achieving sustainable development. I was pleased to announce yesterday with the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Stephen Smith, that Australia will provide more than $17 million to the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM). This funding over four years will support UNIFEM’s work in over 100 countries to reduce women’s poverty and exclusion; end violence against women; reverse the spread of HIV-AIDS among women and girls; and support women’s leadership in governance and post-conflict reconstruction.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs has also announced today that the government will change the family-planning guidelines for Australia’s overseas development assistance program to support the same range of family-planning services for women in developing countries as are supported for women in Australia, subject to the national laws of the relevant nation concerned.

Australia will also provide additional funding of up to $15 million over four years through UN agencies and NGOs for family-planning and reproductive health activities to help reduce maternal deaths. This is part of Australia’s commitment to advance the Millennium Development Goals and to improve child and maternal health. The United Nations estimates that improved family planning could save the lives of as many as 175,000 women each year. This issue was raised with me by many nations and United Nations aid agencies in New York last week and will be warmly welcomed by many of our neighbours.

Australia has made progress in addressing both domestic violence and sexual assault. We have improved support for survivors by:

• significantly increasing funding for emergency accommodation and public housing making it easier for victims of violence to leave home safely;
• supporting new programs which allow victims to remain safely in their home and remove perpetrators;
• encouraging police and judges to be sensitive to the experiences of victims of violence;
• providing counselling, including through emergency phone lines;
• improving legal and social supports for women who have been trafficked; and
• developing a tailored response for Indigenous women who are victims of family violence.

The Australian government believes we should pursue ongoing improvements in our efforts to combat violence against women. Around one in three Australian women experience domestic violence and one in five women experience sexual violence in their lifetimes.

Our key challenge is to change behaviour so fewer women experience domestic violence or sexual assault in the first place, and to offer better supports and legal responses when violence does occur. That is why, in May 2008, I formed a National Council to Reduce Violence Against Women and their Children. I asked them to develop an ambitious 12-year national plan to reduce domestic violence and sexual assault, which I expect to receive soon.

As I explained at the Commission on the Status of Women, Australia has managed to substantially reduce road deaths from drink-driving in recent decades because we have taken a well-researched, methodical, long-term public health approach. We educate drivers about the dangers; we use our laws to prevent drink-driving; and, when we catch someone drinking and driving, we expect to penalise them with the full force of the law. It is this same methodical, multipronged approach we must take in combating violence.

The Prime Minister spoke to a White Ribbon Foundation dinner last year, saying:

From birth, it must be drilled into the conscious and the subconscious of all men that there are no circumstances – no circumstances – in which violence against women is acceptable.

…            …            …

That on violence against women, we have simple, clear policy in two words: zero tolerance.

In the same historic speech, our Prime Minister also acknowledged that violence against women is a gender issue and men need to take responsibility in reducing violence against women and children. Our new approach focuses on working with men and boys, to change attitudes that condone violence and to change violent behaviour.

The Australian government is once again taking the lead and promoting gender equality. In the midst of tough economic times, it is important to continue our work on increasing all people’s life choices and removing the barriers that exist to full participation. Recovery from the global financial crisis relies on every citizen having the opportunity to contribute fully and equally to their society and economy. Greater equality economically and socially between men and women is good for us all. Women benefit from equality with better life opportunities, greater independence and higher incomes. But it is good for men too. Equal caring, for example, allows fathers to share more equally in the joy that parenthood brings. Most importantly greater gender equality strengthens us a nation.

I seek leave to move a motion in relation to the debate.

Leave granted.

I move:

That so much of the standing and sessional orders be suspended as would prevent Mrs Mirabella speaking in reply to the ministerial statement for a period not exceeding 12 minutes.

Question agreed to.

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