Fortnightly Round-Up

16 Days of Activism - 30th Anniversary

Many of you are no doubt currently in the middle of preparing for the 16 Days of Activism against violence against women and girls. Commencing on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, until 10 December, Human Rights Day, it originated by activists at the first Women's Global Leadership Institute in 1991. 

This year marks its 30th anniversary. Over 6000 organisations in approximately 187 countries have participated in the campaign over its life course, with a reach of 300 million people.

We honour and acknowledge women’s movements and their leadership in the 16 Days of Activism and in preventing and ending violence against women and girls more generally.

Around the Country

• DV Vic and Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria have united to form Safe and Equal, combining over thirty years of experience in advocacy and innovation for change in the domestic and family violence sector.

• Commonwealth and state attorneys-general met on 13 November 2021 and have issued a communique. Announcements included.

  1) An agreement to further the development of national principles to address coercive control, noting that proposed draft principles will be taken to public consultation in early 2022, with a view to finalising the national principles by June 2022.

  2) The endorsement of the National Strategic Framework for Information Sharing between the Family Law and Family Violence and Child Protection Systems.

  
  

• All 16 of Australia’s children’s commissioners, guardians, and advocates have issued a statement noting that a commitment by state attorneys-general to develop a proposal to raise the age of criminal responsibility to 12 does not go far enough, and urging all jurisdictions to prioritise the twin actions of legislating to raise the age of criminal responsibility and implementing holistic systems of early intervention and diversion.

• A new financial crime guide will help businesses understand, identify, and report technology-facilitated abuse through financial transaction payment text fields. AUSTRAC’s Fintel Alliance has seen an increase in the use of these fields to stalk, harass or threaten victims, in an attempt to avoid law enforcement scrutiny.

• In Queensland, police footage of statements taken from victims in the aftermath of domestic and family violence will be used as evidence in prosecuting their attacker, under a raft of new government reforms introduced in state parliament.

• Also in Queensland, the parents of domestic violence victim Hannah Clarke have been named Queensland’s Australians of the Year for their advocacy work. Following the loss of their daughter and grandchildren, Sue and Lloyd Clarke have pushed to criminalise coercive control in domestic relationships.

• Victoria Police has launched a landmark policy for dealing with perpetrators of family violence in its ranks that it claims will stop abusive officers from being given "special treatment" and prioritise victims' safety. The standalone policy is being championed by senior police as a "leadership moment" for a force which has been heavily criticised in recent months for failing to hold employees who perpetrate family violence to account.

• The NSW Government is drafting a bill to amend the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 which would require courts to apply current sentencing practices to all historical offences, including domestic and family violence. The proposal follows a six-month Government review, and notes that stakeholders will have a further opportunity to provide input on the draft bill before it is introduced to NSW Parliament next year.

• More than 25 community groups have been successful in the latest round of the Investing in Queensland Women grant program. Minister for the Prevention of Domestic and Family Violence Shannon Fentiman announced the grant recipients including Queensland Rugby League (QRL) who received $10,000 to run an education program to dispel inappropriate behaviour. Applications for next year’s grant program will open in February.

• Grace Tame has spoken about her year as Australian of the Year in ABC’s Australian Story. In response, Nina Funnell corrected misreporting concerning the genesis of the LetHerSpeak campaign.

Around the world

• The Law Society Gazette in the United Kingdom examines the impact of the introduction of the criminal offence of controlling and coercive behaviour in December 2015, drawing on data released earlier this year that the number of these offences being recorded by the police is increasing year-on-year, but noting also that just 6% of recorded offences led to a charge.

• In South Africa, men have been urged to lead the way and eradicate gender-based violence (GBV) as the country gears up to mark 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children Campaign.

• This month in Turkey, a particularly brazen killing has triggered a massive outcry over what women’s rights activists say is the government’s failure to prevent gender-based violence. Activists say that by withdrawing from the Istanbul Convention - a 2011 landmark agreement of the Council of Europe outlining how to ensure the safety of women - Turkey has given up on a roadmap it was the first country to endorse.

• The Welfare Ministry in Israel has released its annual data that show a rise in violent incidents within the family. From the beginning of 2021 until the end of October, some 7,977 cases of domestic violence were reported to the 118 Call Center that is run by the ministry, representing a 10% rise from last year.

• New York state has introduced legislation aimed at helping survivors of domestic abuse protect their finances and maintain their privacy and safety. The new laws require the release of individuals from utility, phone and television contracts in instances of domestic violence, as well as making it easier for a victim of domestic violence to apply to have their voter registration records hidden from the public.

• The Nigerian National Human Rights Commission says it recorded a total of 4,000 complaint calls from victims of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in the past nine months.

• The United States President Joe Biden signed an executive order addressing violence against Indigenous communities, building on the reauthorising of the Violence Against Women Act in 2013 and expanding the jurisdiction to include other offenses like sex trafficking, sexual assault, and child abuse.

• Ten new child-friendly gender-based violence courts are being established across Ghana. These courts are expected to significantly improve the quality and accuracy of evidence of survivors, by addressing the challenges they face in the trial process.

• In Ireland a campaign between Women’s Aid and the Hair and Beauty Industry Confederation (HABIC) will see domestic abuse support resources being rolled out to more than 2,500 hair and beauty salons across the country.

• In response to tragic deaths that occurred at an immigration facility in March, several Japanese organisations issued a joint statement on the unacceptable incidents that have occurred in Japan and lobbied the government for protection for foreign victims of domestic violence.

• UN Women have released their report Ending Violence against Women in ASEAN Member States: Mid-term Review of the ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on the Elimination of Violence against Women.

Research and reports

• The Champions of Change Coalition, in partnership with Challenge DV, No to Violence, Our Watch, the Full Stop Foundation, UNSW Gendered Violence Research Network and WESNET, has released a framework with practical actions and resources for organisations to advance their approach to the prevention and response to domestic and family violence in the workplace: Playing Our Part: a Framework for Workplace Action on Domestic and Family Violence.

• Kaspersky marked the second anniversary of the Coalition Against Stalkerware with the release of a survey report capturing attitudes towards privacy and digital stalking in intimate relationships. Domestic violence experts from other member organisations of the Coalition advised on the research including WESNET.

• Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety (ANROWS) has released Rante-rante ampe Marle and Urreye: “Safe, respected and free from violence” projects evaluation. The evaluation uses a mixed method approach, and includes an assessment of the impact of the project on participants’ attitudes towards - and beliefs about - gender, violence, and Aboriginal culture. 

• The Victorian Law Commission has released its report Improving the justice system response to sexual offences. The report is the result of a major inquiry held over 18 months, involving 99 consultations, and attracting 71 submissions. The report contains 91 recommendations to improve the way the justice system in Victoria responds to sexual offences.

• In the ANROWS report Critical interpretive synthesis: Child protection involvement for families with domestic and family violence, alcohol and other drug issues, and mental health issues, researchers critically examine the evidence-base for both the prevalence and intersection of DFV, AOD and MH in a child protection context.

• The Equality Institute has studied the effects of two messaging campaigns by Tangentyere Council Aboriginal Corporation aimed at preventing violence by dismantling attitudes that lead to violent behaviour, finding that the campaigns helped to dismantle ideas about gender roles.

• Pregnant women in the United States die by homicide more often than they die of pregnancy-related causes — and they’re frequently killed by a partner. Researchers revealed this grim statistic by using death certificates to compare homicides and pregnancy-related deaths across the entire country for the first time.

Surveys

• The Australian Institute of Family Studies wants to hear about family relationships, connections, support given and received, and how COVID-19 has affected families, through a survey aimed at helping to understand the circumstances and wellbeing of families over time. It is open to anyone over 18 years of age in every type of family. 

• Monash University is conducting a Domestic and Family Violence Leave Review and invites people to participate in a 15-minute survey involving a series of questions about experiences of accessing domestic and family violence leave and the support provided by workplaces. 

• Barnardos Australia is undertaking a study on domestic and family violence and its impact on children, and adults are invited to undertake a short survey to build understanding on what can be done to support children and young people exposed to domestic and family violence.

Calls for submissions

• The Australian Government is seeking feedback on the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 to further drive gender equality in Australia. Submissions close 24 November 2021.

• A consultation paper Improving the competency and accountability of family report writers has been released by the federal Attorney-General’s Department, with submissions due by 3 December 2021.

• The Australian Human Rights Commission is inviting submissions to inform the development of a National Anti-Racism Framework, intended as a central reference to guide actions on anti-racism and equality by government. Submissions are now open and close on 15 December.

• The UNSW Law Journal is currently welcoming submissions for Issue 45(3), due by 4 February 2022. The theme is ‘Law and Economics’ and submissions on a range of topics including modern slavery, and interactions between feminist economics and law on areas such as unpaid domestic labour, maternity leave and workplace discrimination are invited.

Events

• The Australian Human Rights Commission is launching Yajilarra nhingi, mindija warrma (from dreams, let's make it reality), a beautiful animation which tells the story of First Nations women’s voices on 24 November at 1.00pm. The event will include a powerful discussion, led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner, June Oscar AO, in conversation with Professor Marcia Langton AO, Fiona Cornforth, Teela Reid and Charlee-Sue Frail.

• Our Watch’s second edition of Change the story is being launched on Wednesday 24 November at 10.30am with Julia Zemiro MCing the event. The second edition of Change the story provides a fully updated, evidence-based framework to inform and guide an effective, coordinated, appropriately resourced, and truly national approach to prevention. 

• A public lecture Hands upraised: can social work activism reduce violence against women?, hosted by Flinders University, is on 24 November at 6pm (both in-person and livestreamed) talking about gendered violence, activism, and the role of social work.

• A webinar on Eliminating Violence Against Women - Responses in Australia and Argentina is being held jointly by the Embassy of Argentina, ANCLAS and the ANU Gender Institute on 25 November 2021.

• On 26 November, 5:00pm - 6:30pm, the Monash Gender, Peace and Security Centre in partnership with the Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre is hosting Natasha Stott Despoja AO to deliver a keynote Holding nations to account for gender-based On violence against women: CEDAW and 16 days of Activism. 

• The Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre in partnership with Rape and Domestic Violence Services Australia are hosting a panel of young people to discuss consent and respectful relationships education on 30 November from 6.30pm to 8.00pm. 

• On 10.00am 7 December Exploring the misidentification of women victim-survivors of family violence as 'predominant aggressors' in Australia will look at the systems in which misidentification occurs, who is most at risk of misidentification, and what role, if any, policy and law reform can play in better protecting victim-survivors who are at risk of being misidentified.

• The Monash Gender and Family Violence Prevention Centre will host a virtual panel Achieving women’s safety and equality in the workplace on 9 December at 4.30pm to focus on women’s safety and equality in the workplace. The panel will be facilitated by the Centre Director Associate Professor Kate Fitz-Gibbon and will feature the Victorian Public Sector Gender Equality Commissioner Nikki Vincent and Our Watch CEO Patty Kinnersly. Additional panellists to be confirmed.

Training and further education

• The Safe Response Toolkit: A Toolkit for Sexual Violence Victim-Survivors and Their Supporters aims to empower victim-survivors by providing information about the legal, medical and personal avenues available after an experience with sexual violence. Information sessions are being held on Friday 26th of November, 3-4pm; Wednesday 1st of December, 1.30-2.30pm; and Thursday 2nd of December, 12.30-1.30pm.

• RMIT’s Graduate Certificate in Domestic and Family Violence provides an exciting opportunity for current and future family violence practitioners, with subjects in gendered violence, responding to family violence, primary prevention of violence against women and specialist case coordination and management. The program is offered online and part-time to support work/life/study balance. Applications can be made online here, or for more information, visit the Program Overview.

• Harmony Alliance has developed a free online course Financial Literacy for Women available in English, Arabic, Dari, Simplified Chinese, Vietnamese, Nepalese, Punjabi, Hazaragi, Thai, Karen and Korean.

Get involved

• The Women’s Electoral Lobby is looking for volunteers in Sydney throughout December to help with the UNSEEN Arts Hub, aiming to give voice to women with lived experience of homelessness and raise awareness about women’s homelessness and the fact that it is often hidden.

*Articles published do not necessarily reflect the views of AWAVA and are included as items of interest only.

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