Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Education) Share this | Hansard source

Today marks the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women and launches 16 days of activism. The theme is Orange the World: End Violence against Women Now! We know that one in three women in Australia have experienced physical violence, we know that one in four women in Australia have been sexually assaulted at work, and we know that, on average, one woman a week in Australia is killed by a partner or former partner. So ending violence now is not soon enough.

There have been plenty of words said in this place about ending violence against women. In 2018, after the shocking murder of Eurydice Dixon in a Melbourne park, then Prime Minister Turnbull said:

Women must be safe everywhere—on the street, walking through a park, in their homes and at work.

In February 2020, many MPs, senators and staff gathered for a vigil after the terrible murder of Hannah Clarke and her three young children Aaliyah, Laianah and Trey. Prime Minister Morrison attended that vigil and he said, 'We must remember their names.' I do remember their names, but remembering the names of Hannah, Aaliyah, Laianah, Trey, Eurydice and the many, many other women who have been murdered will not prevent more women being murdered.

According to the Counting Dead Women project, by the antisexism group Destroy the Joint, which counts all female victims of violence, domestic or otherwise, at least 55 women died in 2020. Shortly after the murder of Hannah Clarke and her children in Brisbane in 2020, I called on the government to implement one of the priority steps in the Safety First in Family Law campaign. Launched by Women's Legal Services Australia and supported by more than 90 organisations, it's a simple change to the Family Law Act—a change to something that had been raised in many reports and inquiries as a danger to women and children. It's a change that costs nothing and could be done next week, but nothing happened. My calls fell on the deaf ears of this Morrison government. Not even after hearing of the terrible murders of Hannah and her children was this government moved to act. I introduced a private member's bill to make this simple legislative change that will save lives. So far, nine Labor members, one member of the Greens and two Liberal members have spoken in support of my bill and the simple change that it proposes.

I encourage all Australians who are serious about preventing violence against women to please ask their federal MP to speak on my bill, to support this simple change that experts in family violence believe will make a difference and will make women and children safer. Words won't make a difference, but action will. My private member's bill won't prevent all violence against women—I'm not suggesting that—but it will make some safer. But there is, of course, much more to be done. Women fleeing domestic violence should have access to safe refuge. Shelters for women and children should be properly staffed and funded. More community sector workers should be available to help women fleeing violence. Women's safety should be a national priority, and Australia needs a family, domestic and sexual violence commissioner.

Labor is committed to action and bringing down the rates of violence in our community. Labor have already announced that we will invest in safe and affordable housing and 500 new community sector workers. We know that violence against women is a national crisis. We know that women are subjected to violence every day. We know that women are sometimes not believed when they say that they have been subjected to physical or sexual violence. I was a member of the Joint Select Committee on Australia's Family Law System, which has just tabled its final report. The committee made 52 recommendations to improve the family law system. The committee also made an important finding that false allegations of violence are not prevalent within the family law system, and that was a unanimous finding of the whole of the committee—including the deputy chair of that committee, Senator Hanson, who has been very vocal about her view that women lie about domestic violence.

This government is great at announcements. They know how to use words, but too often they follow up with nothing. Words are nice—I'm a writer; I love words. But what Australian women need is action. Today begins 16 days of action. Let's see what it takes for the Morrison-Joyce government to actually eliminate violence against women.

My private member's bill is being debated in parliament again next Monday, just four days away. Let's see if any members of the coalition government will even bother to speak on it. I'm not saying they have to support it, but surely they should join the debate and speak to that particular piece of legislation. It is a private member's bill, but it makes a simple change.

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