The Australian government Sunday released the “National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022–2032,” (National Plan) outlining steps to end these forms of violence within one generation. The National Plan was unveiled by the Minster for Social Services, Amanda Rishworth MP and the Minster for Finance, Women and Public Service, and Senator Katy Gallagher.
The purpose of the National Plan is to end all gender-based or gendered violence by 2032. The Department of Social Services outlines that these forms of violence are “a problem of epidemic proportions in Australia.” They continued by stating that:
One in 3 women has experienced physical violence since the age of 15, and one in 5 has experienced sexual violence. On average, a woman is killed by an intimate partner every 10 days. Rates of violence are even higher for certain groups, such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women. All Australian governments are united in their commitment to addressing the unacceptable rates of violence in our communities.
A separate media release from Rishworth also said that in creating the National Plan:
extensive consultations were held with victim-survivors, advocacy groups, specialist services, researchers, representatives from the health, law and justice sectors, business and community groups, and state and territory governments.
The National Plan has four distinct approaches specifically prevention, early intervention, response, and recovery. The plan will have two phases, the first phase ending in 2026 with a reflective evaluation to inform the second phase of the National Plan. There will be a specific action plan for Aboriginal and Torrens Strait Islander women and children, created by those people to “lead culturally appropriate and trauma-informed efforts to achieve the Closing the Gap target.”
The results of the National Plan will also later be evaluated against data collected from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Australian Institute of Criminology and the findings from them will be made available to the public.
