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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-03-16 Daily Xml
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Violence Against Women

The Hon. N.J. CENTOFANTI (14:54): My question is to the Minister for Human Services regarding violence against women. Can the minister please provide an update on the federal campaign to address disrespect and violence against women?

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK (Minister for Human Services) (14:54): I thank the honourable member for her question. The third phase of the Stop it at the Start campaign was launched on International Women's Day on 8 March. Can I acknowledge that South Australia was one of the first states to make a financial contribution to the first Stop it at the Start campaign in 2015, under the previous government.

The third phase of the Stop it at the Start campaign is a primary prevention initiative implemented under the National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and their Children 2010-22. Primary prevention of men's violence against women focuses on the key drivers of attitudes and values, primarily gender inequality, that support the use of violence against women. As former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said, 'Not all disrespect leads to violence, but all violence starts with disrespect.'

Stop it at the Start aims to help break the cycle of violence by encouraging adults to reflect on their attitudes and have conversations about respect with young people, primarily those in the 10 to 17 age group. We know that there are some alarming attitudes among young people about boundaries and respectful relationships, so the focus is on influencing positive change in young people's attitudes towards violence against women and gender equality. It aims to intervene before attitudes and behaviours develop that may lead to violence.

The campaign acknowledges the importance of role modelling and is targeted at parents and family members as well as teachers, coaches, community leaders and employers of young people. Since young people's attitudes and behaviours are shaped by those around them, it's important to expose young people to positive influences where they live, work, learn and socialise. As such, the campaign recognises the important role of adults in influencing the younger generation and preventing men's use of violence against women.

The campaign has thus far been delivered in two phases through social media, advertisements, television commercials, posters and a website. Evaluation research, which has yet to be fully published, was conducted following phases 1 and 2 of the campaign. It found that 70 per cent of all people recalled an element of the campaign activity, with 60 per cent of those people taking action as a result, such as trying to be more respectful to others, thinking about how to show respect to others, trying to be more respectful to help show young people how to behave, having conversations with young people about how to treat the opposite sex with respect and seeking out information and resources to better understand how to talk to young people about respect.

The latest phase urges people to unmute themselves, that is, to not be bystanders—if they see or hear comments that they think are disrespectful, they can speak out. Given that we have had so many Zoom meetings and the like in the last year, it's become a bit of a catchphrase. The creatives I think advised that it was a phrase that they had been considering prior to the lockdown in any case. We think that it is a unique way to change attitudes.

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