The emergence of blossoms on my trees tells me that spring is on the way!

Last week AWAVA, along with member organisations and Friends & Supporters, endorsed the Joint NGO Submission to the UN Human Rights Committee on the List of Issues Prior to Reporting for the Sixth Periodic Report of Australia, coordinated by NACLC and the Kingsford Legal Centre.  The Committee will issue its list of issues for the Australian Government to report on, and Australian NGOs will have an opportunity to contribute to a more detailed report.  AWAVA will post further updates on our website.

This week we have been finalising the NGOs’ Follow-up Report to the CEDAW Committee’s 2010 Interim Recommendations on addressing violence against women and actions for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.  We have received amazing support from members organisations, Friends & Supporters and the wider preventing violence against women sector.  We will publish the report on our website once it is finalised. We received over 100 endorsements, so a huge thank you to all of you that supported AWAVA and NATSIWA’s report.

In news around the country

  • Clementine Ford reminds us not to forget that Chris Brown isn’t the only one when it comes to celebrities with a history of violence against women
  • This article raises concerns over women being trafficked for sex in Queensland mining towns
  • This video of a recent seminar with Michael Flood: He hits, she hits: Assessing debates regarding men™s and women™s experiences of domestic violence  looks at whether men and women use violence against each other at similar rates and with similar effects, see also the presentation slides
  • Homeless Persons’ week prompted articles looking at the causes of, and answers to, homelessness in Australia. This article looks at women and homelessness, highlighting that 50% of women with children staying in homeless assistance accommodation are escaping domestic violence.
  • WESNET’s media release emphasises the urgent need to increase funding for housing and support services for women and children experiencing violence and outlines the impacts of homelessness particularly on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, older women, women in rural and remote areas and their children and that: œOne in every two women who approach services for women escaping domestic and family violence is turned away due to lack of accommodation or lack of resources””
  • Watch this short YouTube clip, Break the Silence, on why domestic violence is a workplace issue
  • Listen to Phil Cleary speak about women’s right to be safe on ABC Radio Sydney
  • And if you missed it – click here for the recent Four Corners’ episode A Matter of Life and Death

And internationally

  • In South Africa, Melbourne ex-pat Greg Nicolson looks at  gender-based violence in South Africa
  • In the UK, there is still discussion and debate over the criminalisation of forced marriage
  • See the concept note for the Expert Group Meeting (EGM) in preparation for CSW57: Elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls in Bangkok, Thailand from 17-20 September 2012

Upcoming Events

This Month

September

  • See the change in date for the Red Cross Trafficking Training in Sydney to 11 September – click here to find out more
  • The Participatory Justice and Victims Conference will be held in Canberra, 17-18 September
  • The Southern Regional Alliance conference is now open for registrations and will be held 20-21 September
  • Take action on Peace Day 21 September, and become part of the largest gathering of people in the name of Peace and non violence. Watch the YouTube clip here
  • Standing firm for change: a journey to justice is a national conference run by the Aboriginal Family Violence Prevention & Legal Service Victoria. The conference will be held on 21-23 November 2012, in Melbourne.  Registration is open until 30 September

Later 

  • The No To Violence conference is in November 2012
  • Law Enforcement and Public Health Conference in Melbourne, November 2012
  • Australian Women’s Coalition is calling young women between 18 – 30 years who live, study or work in Auburn, Bankstown, Liverpool or Coffs Harbour NSW, or in Canberra, ACT to be a part of SHOUT!  A series of three free workshops will run in each location, complemented by an online network of support and skills-sharing and a local network of participants and AWC member organisations. The workshops will culminate in community events on Harmony Day next year, 21 March 2013. Find out more here
  • Internationally: The FREDA Centre for Research on Violence Against Women and Children (School of Criminology, Simon Fraser University), in partnership with the Ending Violence Association of British Columbia (EVA BC), the Canadian Observatory on the Justice System™s Response to Intimate Partner Violence, and the BC Society of Transition Houses, invites you to join the 2012 National Research Day conference,  held 7-9 November in Vancouver