Better strategies are needed to engage with men to stop them committing acts of violence against women, a leading report says, with the government urged to redefine masculinity.
Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Commissioner Micaela Cronin released the first report tracking the progress of the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032 during an address to the National Press Club.
The report said men needed to be included as part of every aspect of ending violence and more intervention options have to be on the table.
“Governments must prioritise developing new and better data on men who use violence, their pathways in and out of violence and what works to engage men to end violence,” the report said.
“Increased accountability for people who use violence is vital.”
The report also recommended a boost to frontline services to ensure they were sustainably resourced, due to crisis centres being “overwhelmed by community need.
“Governments must consider new ways to fund services to ensure effective responses,” the report said.
Ms Cronin has met with more than 300 organisations and people in 2024, as services struggle to keep up with demand despite government funding.
“I know the anger and distress that many communities feel – and their frustration at the lack of progress in addressing gender-based violence,” Ms Cronin said.
The report will be tabled in parliament, a year on from two supporting action plans that outline steps to ending violence in a generation.
A national workforce strategy was also called for to help respond to domestic and family violence.
Domestic Violence Prevention Assistant Minister Justine Elliot told parliament women should not have to solve the issue alone.
“It’s important that all governments face up to where we fall short and look for ways to do it better, this is a whole of government, whole of country effort,” she said.
“If we’re going to get anywhere, we need our whole community – including men – to step up.
“Protecting our daughters is not enough – generational change depends on educating our sons.”
Ms Elliot said the statistics showing a large number of women killed by men in 2024 made it difficult to reconcile that there had been progress made on addressing domestic violence.
“When we look at the long-term picture, we can see significant improvements in community attitudes that reject and challenge this violence,” she said.
“We need to take every opportunity available to intervene early and stop violence from occurring.”
Deputy Opposition Leader Sussan Ley said the rate of violence against women had increased, and that people needed to look beyond the raw statistics.
“These women had dreams. They had hopes and aspirations for their lives. They had friends. They were sisters and mothers. They were loved by so many in our communities, and we have lost them,” she told parliament.
“We are not just talking about statistics. We are talking about very real moments that have happened to real people, to people we know and people we do not.
“We must confront this issue with the fierce urgency we would if it was happening right here in this chamber, because it is happening and it must end.”
One of the plans focuses on the disproportionate level of violence experienced by Indigenous communities.
Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said family violence destroys lives and it must end.
“The safety of women and children experiencing family, domestic and sexual violence is a national priority for our government,” she said.
“We are working every day under the national plan, which is our comprehensive, multi-pronged strategy with states and territories to end violence against women and children in one generation.”
Ms Rishworth said Labor had provided more than $3.4 billion for women’s safety in three federal budgets and convened a dedicated national cabinet on this issue earlier in 2024.
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