Five women have been killed, allegedly by men's violence, in the space of 10 days in Australia. Each killing has occurred in a different state or territory of Australia and involves a range of different circumstances but the commonality across these cases is the alleged use of fatal male violence and that these men were known to the female victim prior to their deaths.
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Last year, 57 women were killed by male violence in Australia. 43 weeks in 2023, according to the Red Heart Campaign led by Sherele Moody, 57 women in Australia have been killed.
The vast majority allegedly killed by a current or former male intimate partner.
This is the tip of the iceberg of violence against women and children in Australia. While these recent deaths have been largely met with silence from those in leadership, domestic and family violence advocates and practitioners are screaming from the trenches.
Increased action, education, community ownership and funding are desperately needed to combat this national crisis.
Intimate partner femicide is preventable. These acts of fatal violence are not inevitable in the Australian community. A sustained and long-term commitment to tackling the underlying drivers of violence against women - gender equality and other forms of oppression - is essential.
Everyone has a role to play in preventing violence against women, and a whole-of-community effort is critically needed if Australia is to advance current efforts.
The most recent National Community Attitudes Survey demonstrated improvements in recognition of domestic violence as an issue in Australia. However, Australians still believe that such violence happens elsewhere - not in their own suburb or town. This is abundantly untrue.
Domestic, family and sexual violence occurs in every corner of the Australian community. The range of women killed in recent days - the differences in their personal circumstances and the circumstances of their deaths - is a stark reminder that men's violence does not discriminate.
All individuals have a role to play in challenging the outdated attitudes and behaviours that drive violence against women. This can involve challenging victim-blaming attitudes, calling out sexist or homophobic jokes made by friends, family or work colleagues, believing victim-survivors who disclose their experience, and learning about relationship red flags.
The all too frequently stated defence - but it's not all men - is unhelpful. Yes, it is not all men, but the statistics show us clearly that it is far too many men. And all men have a critical role to play in securing improved safety for women and children. By educating themselves. By educating others.
By calling out family, friends and work colleagues who make jokes that are disrespectful, discriminatory and harmful for women and girls. By being a champion for women's rights.
The media must also be part of the solution. A joint statement produced by Victorian organisations, last week, on misogyny in the Australia media stated, "the media has the power to promote equality, shape our culture, and ultimately promote positive social change that will prevent violence against women". The power of the media cannot be underestimated.
In the last week we have seen some of the worst examples of media coverage - including the incessant focus on the private school captain role previously occupied by the man who allegedly killed 22-year-old Lilie James, and a sexist cartoon depicting Victoria's second female premier.
This is just to name two examples from the last week alone.
Australian media are critical in shaping attitudes and supporting social change. Australia is fortunate to have National Reporting Guidelines on violence against women, produced by Our Watch. Editors must hold their journalists accountable to meet these standards.
Governments must demonstrate courageous leadership. The federal government has committed to a range of primary prevention initiatives. Just last week funding for the "Healthy Masculinities project" was announced. This project aims to tackle the impact of problematic social media messaging that targets young boys and men.
While the funding of such prevention initiatives is commendable, the quantum of funding is not commensurate with the scale of the problem. In 2023 the women's safety sector estimated that at least 1 billion annually is needed at the crisis end to support victim-survivors seeking help.
While the federal government's allocation of $2.23 billion to support activities under the first five years of the National Plan to end Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032 is unprecedented, it stretches far too thin once prevention, early intervention, response, recovery and healing priorities are accounted for.
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Only two months ago the government released the first Action Plan, which includes the laudable goal of reducing the number of females killed by an intimate partner (current or former) by 25 per cent annually. As we confront a death toll likely to be the highest in recent years, it is time for the government to step up and demonstrate the actions behind this commitment.
The status quo is not delivering the government's transformational commitment to end gender-based violence in one generation. An escalation in efforts and an increase in funding that matches the scale of the problem is urgently required. And the political silence must end - women's lives matter and their deaths matter. The impacts of Australia's national crisis must be called out publicly to generate community ownership and a sense that ending gender-based violence is everyone's responsibility.
- Professor Kate Fitz-Gibbon is a member of the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre, Monash University. Professor Silke Meyer is Leneen Forde chair in child family research, Griffith University.
- Support is available. Phone Men's Referral Service 1300 776 491;1800-RESPECT 1800 737 732.
