Key Points
- A report written by a panel of family and domestic violence experts has detailed a "national emergency" in Australia.
- The Rapid Review of Prevention Approaches was established in May following a spate of murders of women.
- The report makes 21 recommendations for action by federal, state and territory governments.
A report written by a panel of experts and published by the federal government has described family, domestic and sexual violence as a "national emergency".
The independent Rapid Review of Prevention Approaches panel said that as of 15 August, 54 women and 10 children had been killed in Australia and assessed the government's approaches to curb violence.
The review, led by family and domestic violence experts, was established in May after advocates described the federal budget as a to support women's safety.
The government's announcement of the review followed the murders of multiple people in a stabbing attack at Bondi Junction and a spate of high-profile murders of women by current or former partners.
The panel was led by domestic, family and sexual violence commissioner Micaela Cronin, director of the Commonwealth Office for Women Padma Raman, and the secretary of the Department of Social Services, Ray Griggs.
Members of the panel included writer and columnist Anne Summers, journalist and author Jess Hill and the former Victorian Commissioner for LGBTIQ+ Communities, Todd Fernando.
The review didn't call for submissions but used evidence collected through recent consultation processes, including wide-ranging consultations conducted by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advisory Council.
Minister for Women Katy Gallagher said in response to the report's publication that preventing violence is complex and the rapid review builds on the federal government's National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children.
"The report builds on the extensive work underway across the women's safety sector and provides important insights to guide our prevention efforts to ensure they continue to be effectively targeted, with the highest possible impact," she said.
Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth said there are "emerging issues" in domestic, family and sexual violence that need to be faced, including "extreme misogynistic content" online.
What does the rapid review say?
The report, published on Friday, said the panel's findings suggest family, domestic and sexual violence is "more than a national crisis, but a national emergency" and said that it should be an ongoing priority for National Cabinet.
It made 21 recommendations for action by federal, state and territory governments to strengthen approaches to prevent gender-based violence.
A number of areas of priority were highlighted including responding to children and young people's experiences of domestic, family and sexual violence, engaging with men and boys in violence prevention, and better understanding pathways into perpetration.
The first recommendation made by the panel called on governments to "explicitly prioritise the experiences and needs of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and recognise that DFSV in Australia is rooted in our historical context and colonial legacy".
The panel said they acknowledged "with profound sorrow the personal and systemic trauma of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families whose mothers, aunties, sisters, daughters and children have been disappeared, presumed murdered".
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The report cited data from the Senate Inquiry into Missing and Murdered First Nations women and children from 1989-1990 to 2022-2023, saying that over this period 476 First Nations women and 158 First Nations children were recorded as victims of homicide.
The primary recommendations also included adopting an intersectional approach to preventing domestic, family and sexual violence, more rigorous data collection, and embedding research findings and emerging evidence into practice and policy.
The report recommended that governments work with the alcohol, gambling, and pornography industries to address their impact on domestic, family and sexual violence.
This included testing for age-verification pilots for online pornography and research into how those systems will be implemented.
It also called for governments to develop a "national, coordinated and co-designed approach to engaging with men and boys" on "healthy masculinities" and violence prevention.
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What has been the response?
Tessa Boyd-Caine, chief executive officer of Australia's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety (ANROWS), said the review highlights that "domestic, family, and sexual violence is a deeply complex issue that requires hard work and sustained coordinated effort to address it effectively".
Boyd-Caine said ANROWS welcomed the review's recognition of the voices of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as "non-negotiable" in the effort to curb gender-based violence.
ANROWS also applauded the recognition of children and young people "as victim-survivors in their own right".
