Key Points
- Thousands of Australians are taking part in protests against gendered violence this weekend.
- About 15 rallies are being held across Australia amid violence that's killed at least 26 women so far in 2024.
- Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has called for men to "step up" in the fight against the "epidemic of male violence."
Federal Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus has called for men to "step up" as thousands of Australians take to the streets to demand an end to gendered violence.
About 15 rallies are being held across Australia this weekend amid calls for concrete action to break the cycle of violence that has claimed the lives of at least 26 women so far in 2024, according to Destroy the Joint.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will attend the Canberra rally on Sunday after former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull and NSW Premier Chris Minns joined crowds at the Sydney event on Saturday.
Dreyfus said the federal government had spent about $2.3 billion since 2022 on measures to address the issue.
"In this country, we have an epidemic of male violence," he told reporters in Ipswich on Saturday.
"Men need to step up. Men need to talk to their sons, to their brothers, to their colleagues at work and try to work together. It cannot be left to women."
The rallies, organised by What Were You Wearing, come three years after more than 100,000 people took part in the across more than 40 Australian cities.
"Australia's definitely in a time of a national emergency with men's violence," What Were You Wearing Australia chief executive Sarah Williams told ABC News Breakfast on Saturday.
"It's really devastating that it's three years on and we're probably in a worse situation than we were in 2021."
A woman killed every four days in 2024
Demonstrators gathered on Friday evening in Ballarat where locals have been rocked by the deaths of three residents within two months, allegedly at the hands of men.
"Violence against women has become normalised and that's why I think that these rallies have become really special and important," Williams said.
"Each year, more and more women are lost to violence."
Ballarat community members to remember Samantha Murphy, Rebecca Young, and Hannah McGuire.
Earlier this week and Emma Bates, 49, was discovered dead at a property in Cobram in Victoria.
Thousands marched through the streets of Sydney, Adelaide and Hobart on Saturday, chanting "whatever we wear, wherever we go, yes means yes and no means no" and "when our right to safety is under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back".
Demonstrations will be held on Sunday in Melbourne, Bendigo, Geelong, Coffs Harbour, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Wagga Wagga, Brisbane, Perth, Canberra, Orange, and Cobram.
Melbourne rally organiser Martina Ferrara said seeing reports of a woman being killed every four days in 2024 was scary and impacted how they lived their lives.
"It drives a horrible fear on little girls, on young mothers and women as a whole — it is terrifying to think that you could go out on a run and get murdered or you could be doing anything and still not be safe," she told AAP.
What are the rallies calling for?
The rallies are calling on governments to acknowledge violence against women as a national emergency and take immediate action to fund all domestic, family and sexual violence services for at least five years.
They want alternative reporting options for victims and specialist courts to hear cases of violence.
The group also wants better training for first responders and media personnel to stop victim blaming and to wait at least 48 hours before publishing images of any victims.
Other solutions being put forward include Victoria Police calling for a register of convicted family violence offenders to help women make more informed choices when getting into a relationship.
Western Australia will spend $96.4 million to bolster the safety and support of victim-survivors of family and domestic violence.
NSW Premier Chris Minns has said his government will consider calls for a state-based royal commission into gendered violence.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault or family and domestic violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732, text 0458 737 732, or visit . In an emergency, call 000.
