Photo by Simon Schluter
Rosie Batty was named Australian of the Year last week in recognition of her work to raise awareness about the shortcomings of Australia’s response to domestic violence, especially in cases where there are children involved. Batty’s son was murdered by her violent ex-husband following a string of police and family court failures.
In response to the award, Batty has highlighted the hypocrisy of establishing high profile government domestic violence initiatives at the same time that the government is cutting funds and eliminating life-saving services for survivors of abuse.
Read about her call to reinstate the funds for services that will begin to close following funding cuts beginning February 28, with further cuts slated for July here
1 Comment
Rosie is absolutely right. Historically domestic violence has killed many more Australians than domestic terrorism and there is no reason to think that this will change. The Federal Government has no difficulty finding money for “national security” issues to safeguard Australian lives. Australian women deserve the same level of protection from a scourge far more deadly to them than muslim jihadists. It’s time for the Government to do something to bolster the security of Australian women – it would be unAustralian not to.