Fiona Martin (Reid, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today on the motion moved by the member for Newcastle. This week, on 8 March, we will mark International Women's Day. For the growing number of women in this place, International Women's Day is an opportunity for us as female leaders to celebrate the women in our communities and recognise the challenges that we still face collectively. The theme for 2020 is #EachforEqual. It calls on all of us, regardless of our gender, to celebrate women's achievement, raise awareness against bias and take action for equality. Much needs to be done to uproot entrenched gender inequities in our society. For Australia to prosper, we need to take further steps for women's economic security, health, reproductive rights and safety.

While we have made significant gains in some areas of gender parity, other areas continue to leave a scar in our communities and across our country. High rates of family and domestic violence, sexual violence and harassment continue to disproportionately impact women. Since 2013 the coalition government has made ongoing investments, totalling $840 million, to prioritise women's safety. Much of this funding has been dedicated to funding front-line services, prevention strategies and providing safe places for people impacted by domestic and family violence. This investment includes a $60.4 million grants program to provide new or expanded emergency accommodation facilities for those escaping family and domestic violence. We've also expanded the role of the eSafety Commissioner to tackle online abuse and harassment. New tough civil penalties now exist for those posting or threatening to post any intimate image without consent. New criminal offences have been put in place for aggravated and repeated non-consensual image sharing. Abuse is abuse. Whether it occurs online or offline.

Despite bipartisan efforts, violence against women and girls persists. Last week, many of us in this place spoke about the most horrific consequences of domestic violence—an issue which affects women at a disproportionate rate. In Australia, one in six women has experienced physical and/or sexual violence by a cohabiting partner since the age of 15. This means that 1.6 million women and girls right here in Australia are being impacted by gender based violence right now. The majority of men and women in our communities may feel overwhelmed by such devastating statistics.

I spoke last week in this place about how understanding of domestic violence has expanded. The term now refers to abuse in the form of sexual, verbal, psychological, financial, and social abuse. Women and men are being armed with the understanding that abuse is not always physical or obvious but can be sustained and subtle. There are more complex challenges, of course, in the multicultural and linguistically diverse communities, where understanding acceptable behaviour in relationships can be a challenge. Ensuring that services to help and empower victims of domestic violence are accessible and available in community languages must remain a priority and that financial and social support is available to those who choose to leave unsafe circumstances.

We must remember that each of us has the power to challenge attitudes that condone or dismiss violence. We have the power to challenge gender bias. We have the power to keep our friends and family accountable regarding the disrespect of women. We also have the power to reflect on the attitudes we ourselves were raised with and consider whether they truly support a vision of respect for all, regardless of their gender.

An essential way to ensure women's safety is through empowering financial security and employment opportunities. Under the Morrison government, women's full-time employment and female participation in the workforce is reaching record highs. Last year, we delivered the Women's Economic Security Statement, investing $119 million to improve the financial security and independence of Australian women. Initiatives like the Future Female Entrepreneurs Program and the Boosting Female Founders start-up fund are supporting women to become entrepreneurs and access the finance they need to achieve their entrepreneurial goals. We're supporting women across STEM, economics, business and enterprise, so that more women can overcome gender biases and rightfully gain leadership positions in these industries based on their merits and skills. We have introduced more flexible paternal leave to give families more balanced caring responsibilities, and this has provided mothers with choices that suit their employment needs, if they choose to work. International Women's Day refocuses our efforts on gender equality as a central priority of this government.

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