This site is being archived soon. Visit wesnet.org.au for more information.

This week the chair of AWAVA, Julie Oberin, met with Sex Discrimination Commissioner, Elizabeth Broderick, from the Australian Human Rights Commission and representatives from the National Women’s Alliances and attended the AusAID reception with UN Women Executive Director Michelle Bachelet – a busy, productive and inspiring time!    AWAVA attended Michelle Bachelet’s Gender Equality a Lived Reality talk at ANU and was pleased to hear ending violence against women is one of UN Women’s three priorities for 2012; it was good to be reminded that to tackle violence against women, women’s voices need to be heard and we need to ask the question – how do our policies reach those who need it most?

Remember, for up-to-date information on AWAVA’s activities, you can follow us on Twitter at AWAVA_Women.

Meanwhile, back in the offices, we have been inundated with articles and commentary from the USA following comments made by Republican Senate nominee, Todd Akin, about ‘legitimate rape’.  It seems the world over high-profile men are getting this wrong and attempting to create different definitions of rape.

Around Australia

• The Australian Human Rights Commission report on the Treatment of Women in the Australian Defence Force was released this week by Elizabeth Broderick, chapter 7 addresses sexual harassment, sex discrimination and sexual abuse in the ADF. Read the media release here
• Read Elizabeth Broderick’s speech from the recent EVA Media Awards (Eliminating Violence against Women) in Melbourne
• Australia commits funds to support women in developing countries who have been victims of gender-based violence
• The Age has been running a series of articles on the impact of lack of funding for services: Domestic violence services in crisis; Children victims of funds shortfall and Male violence programs in crisis have all appeared this week
• A Ballarat service says it has been inundated with women seeking support

Elsewhere around the world:

Chris Brown and Rhianna have been in the news again, following Rhianna’s recent interview with Oprah (watch here) – Chloe Papas, who wrote the recent review of Chris Brown’s album that went viral, sparked global discussion on partner abuse and talks about the importance of speaking up.

• Actvisits in Somalia welcome the ban on female genital mutiliation included in the country’s new constitution
• A new report from Kenya highlights the plight of women being forcibly sterilised due primarily to their HIV positive status
• Iran is pushing to legalise marriage for girls under the age of 10
• In New Zealand, a Fijian woman has been granted refugee status after fleeing family violence in her home country

Get Involved!!

The National Union of Students Women’s Department this week launched the “”In My Own Voice”” campaign in response to the men™s rights movement that has put up posters in Victorian universities incorrectly claiming that domestic violence is “”half the fault of women”” find out more and how you can get involved

Upcoming Events

NEW!!

• Women’s Legal Services NSW will hold its 30th Birthday Celebration Gala Dinner on 26 September
• The First National Sexual and Reproductive Health Conference will be held 20-21 November

September

• See the change in date for the Red Cross Trafficking Training in Sydney now 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

November

• The No To Violence conference is in November 2012
• Law Enforcement and Public Health Conference in Melbourne, November 2012

Later

• 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

UNiTE to End Violence Against Women – Orange Day TOMORROW

And finally, a reminder that TOMORROW is 25 August – and the Secretary-General™s UNiTE to End Violence against Women campaign proclaims every 25th of the month as Orange Day!

The objective is to raise awareness about the issue of violence against women and girls, not only once a year on 25 November (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women), but every month.

The UNiTE campaign will also launch a new ribbon as symbol for preventing and ending violence against women and girls. With your help, we can make this symbol universal.

What can you do?

1. Wear orange on the 25th of every month
2. Invite others to wear orange on every 25th of the month, share posts & tweet about it!
3. Use & share the photo of the UNiTE ribbon – the new symbol for ending violence against women and girls
4. Change your Facebook cover photo to the cover photo of the Say NO – UNiTE Facebook page, promoting the Orange Day and the ribbon

A busy week in the AWAVA office last week, with the joint report with NATSIWA, NGOs’ Follow-up report to the CEDAW Committee, being finalised, submitted to the CEDAW Committee and published – thanks again to everyone who contributed to, and endorsed the report.   All six National Women’s Alliances and over 100 organisations supported it, a fantastic result! – you can read the report in full here.

An update on the National Plan from FaHCSIA’s National Plan Secretariat is now on our website, and we will continue to share these with you as we receive them.

Last week AWAVA also attended the Australian Government and UN Women launch of the Side by Side Women, Peace and Security DVD and Educational Toolkit at Parliament House  – you can watch the film here.

And now, the news:

• In Asia, social media is being used to raise awareness and start conversations about violence against women
• This report from Rape Crisis Ireland looks at alcohol consumption and victim blaming
• ACOSS’s Australian Community Sector Survey 2012 report published last week highlights “”Domestic violence and sexual assault support services feel the strain”” 52% of respondents said waiting times for services have increased and, 68% report costs of services exceed revenue
• In a first of its kind in Australia, the city of Monash will launch a $1million preventing violence against women project
• Western Australia will launch GPS Monitoring for sex offenders
• Female Genital Mutiliation is also back in the news, as it becomes increasingly relevant to Australia

Resources

New Resource!

Mental health and psychosocial support for conflict-related sexual violence: principles and interventions produced by the WHO, UNFPA, and UNICEF looks at strategies for supporting victims/survivors of sexual violence in conflict

Upcoming Events!

A reminder – if you or your organisation have an upcoming event that you want to promote, email the details to [email protected] and we will do our best to include it in our events section.

Exciting news: Michelle Bachelet, Executive Director of UN Women, is visiting Australia this week, AWAVA will be listening to Ms Bachelet speaking on Gender equality: a lived reality? at ANU on 24 August

September

• See the change in date for the Red Cross Trafficking Training in Sydney now 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

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

• Sexual Abuse and Talking to Children about Safety is a free information seminar, presented by WIRE – 16 August in Melbourne

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

The first weekly round-up edition for the month and the news has been dominated with Olympic 2012 headlines; still, a few interesting articles to share, and dont forget to check out what’s on this month and coming up.

A quick update on the NGOs’ Follow-up CEDAW report: the final report was circulated this week for endorsement, and we hope to have your organisations support by 3pm Friday 3 August.  Thank you for your valuable contributions, AWAVA and NATSIWA have really appreciated your feedback and involvement in the process.  A final version of the report will be published on the website once it has been submitted to the CEDAW Committee.

Around the Nation

• In this media release, UN Women Australia wants businesses to include provisions for employees affected by domestic and family violence
• In Sydney, Metro have announced plans to provide employees with domestic and family violence leave, which could flow on to other industries
• The EVAs (Eliminating Violence Against Women Media Awards) Media Awards 2012 were announced this week.  The EVAs are held annually in recognition of journalists’ excellence in reporting on violence against women. The EVAs is a project partnership between AWAVA Advisory Group member Domestic Violence Victoria, and Friend & Supporter, No To Violence Male Family Violence Prevention Association, and CASA Forum, the women™s and men™s peak organisations supporting family violence and sexual assault services in Victoria

Internationally

• In France, new sexual harrassment laws have just been passed

Resources

New Resources

• The Indigenous Justice Clearinghouse has released this report Communities working to reduce Indigenous family violence, written by Kyllie Cripps and Megan Davis
• Want some tips on meeting with MPs?  This handy reference, provided by our sister alliance ERA (Equality Rights Alliance) and Kevin Noakes, (a staffer from the Office of Warren Snowdon MP) may be just the thing you need

Get Involved

Media Peace Awards 2012: Call for Nominations

Journalists and producers whose work promotes awareness of social justice and humanitarian issues are encouraged to nominate now for the 2012 Media Peace Awards. The work must have been published/broadcast in the Australian public media between 3 September 2011 and 31 August 2012. Winners will be announced at the Awards Presentation Dinner, to be held at the Grand Hyatt Melbourne on Friday 26 October to coincide with United Nations Day on 24 October. For entry criteria and nomination forms please click here

Upcoming Events

New!!

• The 7th Women’s Health Conference, being held in 2013, is now calling for abstracts – submissions close 30 September
• The Southern Regional Alliance conference is now open for registrations and will be held 20-21 September
• New dates have been announced for the Red Cross Trafficking Training for Melbourne and Sydney – click here to find out more
• 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 November 7-9 in Vancouver

This Month

• Homeless Persons Week, running 6 -12 August, recognises the most common reason clients give for seeking assistance relates to domestic and family violence
• The Violence Against Women Conference on 7,8, 9 August 2012, in Brisbane www.violenceagainstwomenqld.com.au
• Sexual Abuse and Talking to Children about Safety is a free information seminar, presented by WIRE – 16 August in Melbourne

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
• The Participatory Justice and Victims Conference will be held in Canberra, 17-18 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

Firstly, a big thank-you to everyone who participated in the recent CEDAW online survey hosted by AWAVA and NATSIWA – we had some excellent, informative and well thought-out responses and really appreciate your contributions. For those that requested it, you will have received a draft report for comment by today 27 July.  The report will be circulated next week for endorsement, so please provide your organisation’s logo for inclusion and circulate it to your networks.  We would like these by 3pm on Friday 3 August.  Keep an eye out for the final version, which will be posted on the website around mid-August

Lots happening this week in the news!  Quite a few articles internationally about the rising number of incidents and reports of violence against women in different countries, which you can check out below, and for those that would like a bit of weekend reading, there are a number of new Australian reports released this week for you to delve into.

But firstly, for those that don’t want to read and would rather listen – download this podcast from SBS where UN Women Executive Director, Julie Mackay, discusses domestic violence leave in the workplace

Around the Nation

• A new report out this week by the Australian Human Rights Commission says that Bystanders can play a vital role against sexual harrassment. This opinion piece in the Sydney Morning Herald, written by Elizabeth Broderick, Sex Discrimination Commissioner, goes into further detail
• A number of reports from the  Australian Domestic and Family Violence Clearinghouse have been published this week: this one covers responding to alcohol misuse and domestic violence; also, What do we know about Dating Violence and Australian Adolescents? and thirdly, Supporting women who remain in violent relationships
• This media release from the Minister for Women’s office says that “”Ministers agree to build better evidence base on violence against women””
• In South Australia, new police powers have seen an increase in interim intervention orders in domestic and family violence cases
• Still in South Australia, this story shares one woman’s story of emotional and physical abuse

And Internationally

• In India, violence against women is on the rise, more so than any other type of crime
• Statistics from the UK show a rise in arrests and prosecutions for crimes  of violence against women – you can also read more here
• Zimbabwe shares a similar story, with incidents of reported domestic violence increasing
• The UN calls on all citizens of the world to end human trafficking
• This article from the UK looks at employers’ responsibilities and domestic violence
• Still in the UK, and the Director of Public Prosecutions estimates that 9 out 10 sexual assaults still go unreported
• A successful pilot program of mandatory lie detector tests for sex-offenders is set to be rolled out across England and Wales

Upcoming Events

New!!

• The Participatory Justice and Victims Conference will be held in Canberra, 17-18 September

This Month

• Wire have announced new dates and locations in Victoria for their Women’s Workshop: Getting Control of your money after family violence

August

• Homeless Persons Week, running 6 -12 August, recognises the most common reason clients give for seeking assistance relates to domestic and family violence
• The Violence Against Women Conference on 7,8, 9 August 2012, in Brisbane www.violenceagainstwomenqld.com.au
• Sexual Abuse and Talking to Children about Safety is a free information seminar, presented by WIRE – 16 August in Melbourne

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
• The 7th Womens Health Conference will be held in Sydney in 2013
• 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

A busy week this week, with lots of international news and reports crossing our virtual desks that we want to share with you. But before you settle in to reading, check out the details on the UN Women event below, where you can join an on-line discussion on violence against women with experts across the world (without leaving the comfort of your desks or homes!)  Make sure that you register now if you want to participate, it starts Monday.

Be Involved!

UN Women are hosting an online discussion on ending violence against women and girls from 23 July “ 3 August which will inform preparations for the 57^th session of the Commission for the Status of Women (CSW57) in March 2013.  CSW57’s theme is: Eliminating and preventing all forms of violence against women and girls.  This is a great opportunity for you to give your views and contribute your expertise on addressing violence against women, respond to questions and share thoughts on best practice, gaps and challenges.  The key themes of the discussions will feed into two reports by UN Women to inform the UN Secretary-General™s reports for CSW57 and to guide discussions between CSW members, and will feed into an Expert Group Meeting on prevention (Bangkok, 17-20 September 2012) which will also present its outcomes to CSW.

The first week of discussions will focus on primary prevention and the second week on multi-sectoral services and responses to victims/survivors

Click here to find out more and register

In News Around Australia

• Many of you will have heard Ricky Nixon’s name in the news again over the last week, as he has been arrested on a number of charges relating to assaulting his partner. This op-ed by Susie O’Brien says there is no place in public life for men like Ricky Nixon
• More funding cuts in Queensland will impact on another frontline service – Breaking the Cycle in Rockhampton
• And take some time to read this article published in Marie Claire last month on the sterilisation of women and girls with disabilities in Australia

Around the World

• Philanthropist Owen Glenn has committed $80 million to addressing Domestic and Family Violence in New Zealand and the Roundtable on Violence Against Women supports his call for an inquiry into why domestic and family violence is still a major issue in New Zealand
• Still in NZ, the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) focused on violence against women when it met with NZ officials this week – recent reforms to family legal systems and lack of progress in implementing recommendations from the Taskforce for Action on Sexual Violence report were called into question – read Women’s Health Action’s media release here
• News from Mexico reports that violence against women is surging, and many of the reported incidents remain uninvestigated
• A new report from Pakistan highlights violence against women, particularly domestic violence and ‘so-called honour killings’, are on the increase. Kidnapping and abduction cases are also on the rise
• Poor implementation of laws in Pakistan is argued in this article to be the main reason behind an increase in violence against women
• Dr Rashida Manjoo, UN Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, says that recent killings of women in Afghanistan and Pakistan are a tragic reminder of a… global and increasing concern
• and finally, read this op-ed on sterilisation of women and girls with disabilities

New Reports

New Reports  from the UK and Ireland that you may find interesting:

Sexual violence against people with disabilities – This report from Rape Crisis Network Ireland presents research findings suggesting that there are few notable differences between disabled and non-disabled women in relation to prevalence of sexual violence.

Office of the Children™s Commissioner™s Inquiry into Child Sexual Exploitation in Gangs and Groups, with a special focus on children in care – The Office of the Children™s Commissioner has produced a briefing on the emerging findings of its inquiry, highlighting that both perpetrators and victims are ethnically diverse and come from all social backgrounds. The inquiry has found that young men and boys, as well as adults, are involved in perpetrating sexual exploitation and that there are some links to adult-based prostitution and brothels.

Upcoming Events

New!!

• Sexual Abuse and Talking to Children about Safety is a free information seminar, presented by WIRE – 16 August in Melbourne

This Month

• The Equality Rights Alliance are conducting FREE Federal Budget training in Alice Springs 23 July – click  here to learn more and register now!!
• Wire have announced new dates and locations in Victoria for their Women’s Workshop: Getting Control of your money after family violence

August

• Homeless Persons Week, running 6 -12 August, recognises the most common reason clients give for seeking assistance relates to domestic and family violence
• The Violence Against Women Conference on 7,8, 9 August 2012, in Brisbane www.violenceagainstwomenqld.com.au

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
• The 7th Womens Health Conference will be held in Sydney in 2013
• 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

Another big welcome to all our new subscribers! We’ve had quite a few of you join us over the past few weeks, which is great news (although, it might just be the cold weather in the southern states keeping you all indoors and looking for a great read!)

Quite a few diverse and interesting articles this week – and a few new events for you to check out as well.

Around the nation

• The Victorian Department of Human Services have this week released their Indigenous Family Violence Primary Prevention Framework
• This media release reports on Australia funding $17.7 million to reduce domestic and community violence against women in Afghanistan
• Volume 1 of the DLA Piper Report: Allegations of sexual and other abuse in Defence has now been released in full – read the media release here
• The Safe at Home, Safe at Work project has received funding for a further 12 months

Around the world

• New reports show that rape is being used as a weapon of war in Syria
• Amnesty International say that there has been a failure to address increased violence against women in Mexico

Get Involved!

The NSW Legislative Council has established a Select Committee on the partial defence of provocation – you can have your say by lodging your submission by 10 August 2012

Upcoming Events

New!!

• 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.
• Wire have announced new dates and locations in Victoria for their Women’s Workshop: Getting Control of your money after family violence

This Month

• Last chance to submit your abstracts for the inaugural National Rural Women’s Conference in February 2013 – closing date 4pm today (13 July)
• Still time to register to attend the Red Cross Human Trafficking sessions in Canberra on Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 July
• The Equality Rights Alliance will be conducting FREE Federal Budget training in Alice Springs 23 July – click  here to learn more and register now!!

August

• Homeless Persons Week, running 6 -12 August, recognises that the most common reason clients give for seeking assistance, relates to domestic and family violence
• The Violence Against Women Conference on 7,8, 9 August 2012, in Brisbane www.violenceagainstwomenqld.com.au

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

Later 

• The No To Violence conference in November 2012
• Law Enforcement and Public Health Conference in Melbourne, November 2012
• The 7th Womens Health Conference will be held in Sydney in 2013
• 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

Something of a quiet week in the news this week when it comes to reporting on violence against women – so only a brief round-up this week. Remember, if there is something you want to share or promote through the AWAVA website, email us  – we read all your emails and will consider all of your suggestions for inclusion.

Be sure to take some time to check out all the upcoming events in the sector  – there is a lot coming up in the very near future!

Around the Nation

• The Australian Institute of Criminology™s (AIC) second Trafficking in Persons monitoring report and research paper has been released – see the media release here. Or, read the full report here
• This report in The Age, explores the growing problem of sexual harrassment and virtual abuse that female gamers are subjected to

Upcoming Events

This Month

• National Rural Women’s Conference 2013 call for abstracts closes today, 6 July
• Launch of NUS Safe Events Respectful Clubs and Societies program, in Canberra 10 July  – find out more
• The Equality Rights Alliance will be conducting FREE Federal Budget training in Alice Springs 23rd July – click  here to learn more and register now!!

August

• Homeless Persons Week, running 6 -12 August, recognises that the most common reason clients give for seeking assistance, relates to domestic and family violence
• The Violence Against Women Conference on 7,8, 9 August 2012, in Brisbane www.violenceagainstwomenqld.com.au

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

Later 

• The No To Violence conference in November 2012
• Law Enforcement and Public Health Conference in Melbourne, November 2012
• The 7th Womens Health Conference will be held in Sydney in 2013
• 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

This week, on June 26th, it was the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture – sadly, many of these victims are women fighting for basic human rights. To learn more, read the UN’s Secretary General’s message here.

A quiet week in the news around the country, but it would have been hard for anyone to avoid the Grant Hackett interview and the multitude of news articles published afterwards. AWAVA made this media statement:

“”It’s important to understand that violence against women is not just physical and sexual violence, and it™s not a private matter.  Violence against women includes abusive, intimidating and controlling behaviours, destroying her property, and shifting responsibility for abusive behaviour to her or someone else.  This behaviour is never caused, invited or deserved by the victim.  Men like Grant Hackett who are public figures and role models need to recognise that their behaviour is abusive and must change.  We need to remember that the safety of women and children is paramount and that from a very young age, children begin to form their beliefs and attitudes about how women and men should behave within relationships.””

AWAVA’s spokesperson, Executive  member, Margaret Augerinos, was quoted in the West Australian, emphasising that public figures and role models need to recognise that their behaviour is abusive.

In other news around Australia:

• For many of those working in the community services sector, this media release from the Treasurer’s Office will bring welcome news
• AWAVA welcomed the news of the establishment of the statutory office of the National Children’s Commissioner – read more here

And around the world:

• In Zimbabwe, columnist Leo Wamwanduka calls on men to change their thinking and create a ‘new’ generation of men that do not use violence against women
• There are calls in Jakarta for greater coordination of agencies providing services to victims of violence
• a new report from Pakistan sheds some light on the extent of violence against women and girls, particularly sexual violence
• In Ghana, activists are trying to educate about, and end, Female Genital Mutiliation
• Read this opinion piece by Muhammad Abdul Bari, from the UK, who says criminalising forced marriage is not the answer
• In Manipur, North-Eastern India, there are calls for more gender-based preventative work to end violence against women, with this writer saying that legislation is not enough

Upcoming Events

NEW!!

• Law Enforcement and Public Health Conference in Melbourne, November 2012

July

• The Association of Women Educators conference being held 3-5 July 2012 – for details and registration click here
• National Rural Women’s Conference 2013 has a call for abstracts closing 6 July
• Launch of the AWAVA-endorsed NUS Safe Events Respectful Clubs and Societies program, in Canberra 10 July  – find out more
• The Equality Rights Alliance will be conducting FREE Federal Budget training in Alice Springs 23rd July – click  here to learn more and register now!!

August

• Homeless Persons Week, running 6 -12 August, recognises that the most common reason clients give for seeking assistance, relates to domestic and family violence
• The Violence Against Women Conference on 7,8, 9 August 2012, in Brisbane www.violenceagainstwomenqld.com.au

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

Later 

• The No To Violence conference in November 2012
• The 7th Womens Health Conference will be held in Sydney in 2013
• 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