Violence Against Women

The Hon. C. BONAROS (16:26): I move:

That this council—

1. Acknowledges the 55 Australian women who died as a result of violence in 2020;

2. Expresses its deepest condolences to the families, friends and loved ones of the murdered women;

3. Acknowledges the importance of the annual Pay Our Respects event in honouring the women whose lives were tragically taken in the preceding year in Australia;

4. Recognises the importance of the annual Pay Our Respects event in highlighting the prevalence of violence against women;

5. Recognises the role of gender equality in ending violence against women;

6. Condemns all forms of violence against women; and

7. Calls upon all members of parliament to continue to advocate for the prevention of violence.

Each and every day, each and every one of us has a responsibility to work towards ending violence against women. The numbers, the grim death tolls, are simply unacceptable. In 2020, 55 Australian women were tragically killed and murdered. Fifty-five families were broken and so many, many more hearts were broken. In 2019, that number was 63. In 2018, 71 Australian women were murdered. While these crushing statistics have decreased in recent years, one woman's death caused by violence is one death too many, so we certainly still have a long way to go.

On Saturday, I joined a number of my parliamentary colleagues in honouring those women and highlighting the continued need for change. One of the most poignant moments during the event was when the parents of Semaphore teenager Chelsea Ireland, allegedly murdered alongside her boyfriend, Lukasz Klosowski, stood on the steps of parliament and raised her number—number 37. We took a moment to pay our respects to both Chelsea and Lukasz, whose murder last year shook us all to the core.

Chelsea's parents had seen the event in the media by chance the previous day and attended in her honour, as did family members and, indeed, the mum of Lukasz. It took almost an hour to read each and every woman's name, number and age, if we had those details, and pay our respects to each with a moment's silence. We put a name to a number where we could because, as we know, these are all so much more than just a number, and we remembered them: real women, real daughters, real mums, real sisters, real aunts, real friends and real loved ones.

The silence was hauntingly deafening, and I do not think there was a dry eye on the steps or in the crowd. The pain of those loved ones present was written all over their faces, and it was gut-wrenching. What do you say to those families and friends, other than we can and must do better in the names of their loved ones.

We heard from the Assistant Minister for Domestic and Family Violence Prevention and we heard from Senator Penny Wong, who, like many of us, reflected on one question: what else can we do? Senator Wong focused on sowing the seeds of respect amongst our kids, teaching them to respect themselves and others equally. It was such a simple yet important message. Just this morning, I attended my son's welcome ceremony at his school and I was really heartened to see that respect is one of the five core values our school includes amongst its teachings.

We all have a role to play in this, and this is such a simple first step we can all take in our homes, with our kids, in our offices, in our workplaces, in our daily lives generally. It is one of many things we can do, but it is of course not the only thing. Award-winning journalist Lauren Novak highlighted in an article on the day of Pay Our Respects:

We cannot endure this senseless and preventable waste of life for another year. And especially not in 2021, when we have named a survivor of sexual violence, Grace Tame, as our Australian of the Year.

If, as Lauren points out, politicians are holding up their end of the bargain, there are definitely roles for every South Australian man and woman, even those who think it has nothing to do with them. To quote Lauren:

If you reckon you're not affected by domestic violence in SA, think again. Given SA Police investigate more than 10,000 related crimes each year and South Australians made more than 15,000 calls to the 1800 RESPECT hotline in 2019-20, the chances are high that you know someone who is a survivor and/or a perpetrator.

Hundreds of millions of your tax dollars are also going towards the enormous cost of police and ambulance officers, crisis housing, counselling hotlines, incarceration and rehabilitation required to address the problem. So, you've got skin in the game.

Lauren also wrote:

There are thousands more women, in SA alone, who are physically and mentally scarred or disabled by violence perpetrated largely by men they thought they could trust.

Lauren has hit the nail on the head. We all have skin in the game, politicians, educators, families and community members alike. We are all, I think, doing our bit in here. This government has committed more funds than we have seen in decades. The opposition has put up legislation for tougher penalties, covering off on breached court orders for family violence and criminalising non-physical abuse. The crossbench has done its bit with various measures of their own and supporting government and opposition measures. I think we are all trying, and we all want the same result. There are good women and men in this place who, with a little political will, can do so much good.

As Lauren so articulately put it, 'While the politicians work on their end, you can act, too.' We can all act in our private capacities. Lauren continued, 'Don't turn away because it's all too grim. Don't switch off because it doesn't affect you.' Do not look away as we did with Kim Murphy, whose screams for help while she was being violently murdered went unanswered. As Lauren wrote:

Take a moment to think about what might be happening behind closed doors in your street. Who might need your support? Or is it you that needs to reach out?

It is my hope that next year the event will be much shorter. It is my hope that there will be many fewer women we need to pay our respects to in January next year. Even more, I, like every member in this place, I am sure, look forward to the day when we do not need to attend these services, other than to honour those lives already lost.

In closing, I would like to take the opportunity to thank and pay tribute to the organisers of the Pay Our Respects event, Gillian Lewis and Stacey Nelan. Their selfless advocacy is admirable and, unfortunately, much needed. What they do is not easy, but we are forever grateful that the memories of all those women who have lost their lives so tragically and so needlessly are being commemorated in such a fitting way. From me, thank you for doing your bit to raise awareness and remember those lives already lost.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. I.K. Hunter.