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“We join groups all around the world gathering, marching, supporting, making their voices heard to prevent and eliminate violence against women and girls,” Zonta Club of Geelong president Beryl McMillan said.<\/p>\n
“Zonta envisions a world in which women’s rights are human rights and every woman is able to achieve her full potential.<\/p>\n
“In such a world, women have access to all resources and are represented in decision-making positions on\u00a0an equal basis.<\/p>\n
“With men, we’re not asking for more, we’re asking for equal… and in such a world, no woman lives in fear of violence.”<\/p>\n
A variety of community-led initiatives are set to take place across the 16-day campaign, while close to 40 orange cardboard ladies have been scattered across the region at public buildings, hospitals, community centres and libraries to bring further awareness to the campaign.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Member for Western Victoria Sarah Mansfield spoke of the women she treated while working as a general practitioner, women living in fear, women with “unspeakable injuries”, women forced to use aliases.<\/p>\n She said every death was a stark example of how the system continues to fail women and called on the government to take action by increasing public housing, accessible and affordable healthcare and childcare, raising welfare payments, improving food security and properly fund community legal centres and family violence support organisations.<\/p>\n “It should not be left up to under resourced, non-government organisations to try and pick up the pieces.<\/p>\n “A family fleeing domestic violence should not have to choose between putting food on the table or seeing a doctor.<\/p>\n “They shouldn’t have to wait up to two years on a public housing waitlist… experiencing homelessness every single night.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The city’s executive director of corporate services Troy Edwards said there were 4,865 reported incidents of family violence in the Geelong region in the 2022-23 financial year, equating to 13 incidents each day.<\/p>\n “That very much sounds like an epidemic to me that we need to deal with.<\/p>\n “The violence is widespread, but I think just as importantly, we don’t have to accept it. It is preventable and that starts with changing the culture that allows it to happen.<\/p>\n “It starts with addressing the power imbalance that supports the culture, and it starts with promoting respect.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2024\/11\/DSC03823-1024x683.jpg\")
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