Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Bilyk for the question and for raising this matter today. Tomorrow is the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, which is an important day for us to acknowledge one of the widespread human rights abuses that exist worldwide. This day also commences the 16 days of activism.

We mark this day as part of a global call to action to end violence against women. Worldwide, one in three women have experienced physical or sexual violence, mostly by an intimate partner. This is even higher when including sexual harassment. This statistic is mirrored by the Australian experience, where one in three women have experienced violence by an intimate partner, one woman dies every 10 days in Australia at the hands of her former or current partner, and one in two women in Australia have experienced sexual harassment in their lifetime. First Nations women are 11 times more likely to be killed due to experiencing family violence than non-Indigenous women and are 34 times more likely to be hospitalised as a result of this violence. We know that this violence is compounded for women from some backgrounds who also experience other forms of discrimination, like ableism, homophobia and racism. It doesn't just have a human cost. It also costs the economy, at $26 billion a year, half of which is borne by the victims themselves.

This violence against women and children is not inevitable, and we can and must take action to end it. It's why we're working with states and territories on a collective goal—to end violence against women and children in a generation—through the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032 that was released on the 17 October this year and agreed by the Commonwealth states and territories. Together, we can take action to achieve an Australia and a world where all women and girls live free from fear and violence.