As South Australians grapple with the loss of four women in separate and unrelated incidents over the course of one week, advocates are calling for change.
Embolden, the state’s peak body for domestic, family and sexual violence services is calling for a royal commission to investigate gender-based violence in South Australia.
The group and supporters rallied on the steps of parliament on Friday.
Deirdre Flynn, from support service Catherine House, said a “battle” was underway.
“Every person needs to go out in their community and ask each other ‘what can we do?'” she said.
Embolden general manager Mary Leaker said a royal commission was “essential” to shine a light on the experiences of those experiencing violence and abuse.
“We need this to drive real and lasting change, to create a safer community for women, children and others experiencing violence,” she said.
Adelaide City Councillor and domestic violence prevention advocate Arman Abrahimzadeh OAM, said the epidemic of gender-based violence required urgent action.
“The more we talk about it, the more likely we are to encourage someone who may have either witnessed or heard something to do something about it, or for those who may actually be experiencing family and domestic violence for them to reach out and get assistance.”
In the City of Tea Tree Gully, a 20-metre art installation was erected to acknowledge White Ribbon Australia’s 16 days of activism.
The piece is shaped like a ribbon and created from 2,000 tree guards, each individually staked into the ground at Civic Park by members of the local community in a stand against gender-based violence.
About a kilometre away, Jodie Jewell was allegedly shot dead by her estranged husband on Tuesday night.
Professor of Social Work at Flinders University, Sarah Wendt, said this week’s deaths were a concerning representation of a broader problem.
“These homicides are a reflection of this significant social issue in Australia called domestic and family violence and we cannot take our focus off this issue,” she said.
She said South Australia was currently seeing the issue play out “at the extreme end”.
Now, she is calling for a conversation around the drivers of violence in Australia.
“Unfortunately, in 95 per cent of cases in terms of severe physical and sexual violence, men are being named as the perpetrators,” she said.
This week, the Australian Bureau of Statistics released data that found more than a quarter of women, compared to 15 per cent of men, are experiencing partner violence or abuse from the age of 15 onwards.
According to Counting Dead Women Australia, run by advocacy group Destroy the Joint, 53 women had been killed as a result of violence around the country as of November 22, 2023.
(ABC)
