The news over the last week of the brutal alleged femicides has hit me hard. In the time that I have been writing this another woman has been allegedly murdered in Bendigo.
10 days, 5 women dead. I personally am noting an apathy in response across all channels.
My name is Katherine Berney I’m the Executive Director of the National Women’s Safety Alliance.
After the headlines of last week, I felt shattered and angry. Most corners of the media felt the need to rush in with assurances that Paul Thijssenn, the 24-year-old who allegedly bludgeoned a young woman to death in her workplace, was acting out of character — that he was a “good guy”, a “leader”, who snapped. The reality is we don’t know anything about who he was in relationships with, other than he was 24 years of age, and the woman he saw for five weeks is now dead. We then had headlines rushing to describe a cat-walking resident’s shock at an alleged murder in Canberra happening in “such an affluent area”. We have thought pieces that feel the need to excuse shattering violent choices as a mental health or public health crisis. The reality is it is far more nuanced that “investing in men’s health” as a singular solution to society’s social issues.
It’s 2023, and already this year, 57 women have been killed already, according to Australian Femicide Watch’s Red Heart Campaign, led by journalist Sherele Moody.
The ANROWS National Community Attitudes Towards Violence Against Women (NCAS) 2021 report has alarming statistics on how Australians view violence against women. A majority of Australians don’t believe that violence against women occurs in all communities, including their own, and yet, 91 per cent of respondents believe that violence against women is an issue in Australia. Where is this violence happening, never, never land?
There is a growing frustration at the soothing: “This violence is absolutely shocking, it’s also entirely preventable.” Great, then let’s get started on that because women and children are dying at a rapid rate. That language is othering and suggests that this isn’t happening every day, in real time, in communities in every city, town, and community.
The idea that there will be one linear solution, agency, leader, or organisation to change such engrained behaviours and beliefs, is spectacularly naive and I would argue, dangerous.
We keep asking for the national culture change piece how will this be prevented? Whose job is it? How are we reaching grass roots community? Who is the target audience for these messages?
Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence is discussed in the room of public policy as a wicked social problem. By its very nature, due to the complexities and interconnected nature of the issues involved, there will not be a linear solution. Rather, they must be a suite of initiatives that need to work in tandem with policy change for there to be lasting systemic cultural change. The key to being successful is collaboration and innovation in how we tackle these issues more broadly. We need a pivot in how we define success and how we measure what success means. This is a critical piece of work within the National Action Plan.
It is the worst-kept secret that the women’s safety sector can be a fractured and difficult place to navigate due to the historical “hunger games of funding’’ that have led to a siloed, scarcity approach to the work. This status quo has suited previous decision-makers who were resistant to the message of change that is carried by the movement.
It is my experience that this sector is the most passionate and dedicated in Australia. We have seen the strength of collaborative advocacy from the landmark family law reforms which passed through both houses; This was a collective effort across states, territories and decades from Women’s legal services and the frontline services. A win that showed the power of our collective activism and lobbying. Frankly, we all stand on the shoulders of giants in our work here and the education I get through my members and co workers every day is invaluable.
Ending domestic, family and sexual violence should be a national movement and one that is the responsibility of every Australian. We need definitive leadership with messaging and call to action that matches the unprecedented commonwealth investment in this issue. Right now, we don’t need platitudes of “this is horrific, but it will be ok. We are working on it.”
So, I will say this: the violence we have seen over the past days and years is beyond unacceptable. We all have a role to play in ending violence against women and children in this country.
For the health of Australia, we can no longer be frozen with inaction in the hope of an aspirational future. We must all demand more.
Katherine Berney was named the Women’s Agenda Emerging Leader in the Not For Profit Sector at the Women’s Agenda Leadership Awards in October 2023, for her work as Executive Director of the National Women’s Safety Alliance.