Tens of thousands in Australia are calling attention to violence against women

In the cities of Sydney and Adelaide, among others, attention was drawn to new figures on femicide, which show that on average a woman would be killed every four days in Australia by 2024. In Adelaide, it is estimated that at least three thousand demonstrators gathered at the town hall.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese joined demonstrators in the capital Canberra. There he gave a speech in which he called for a cultural change and a reform of the legal system. “We must ensure that it is not always women who have the turn, but that men also change their behavior,” said the Prime Minister. Albanese has previously spoken of a ‘national crisis’ that deserves more attention.

The demonstrators asked the Prime Minister to declare a national emergency, but the Prime Minister rejected this. This is being announced to quickly release money in the event of, for example, serious forest fires, countered Albanese, who said he wanted to tackle gender violence as a ‘long-term project’: “We have to tackle this week after week, month after month and year after year,” said Albanese.

Violence against women

Australia has seen large-scale demonstrations against gender violence in the past. Protests were also held throughout the country in 2021. A series of recent murders involving women have put the issue back on the agenda among Australians. Earlier this month, for example, a man stabbed six people to death, five of whom were women, in a Sydney shopping centre. According to police, the man deliberately chose female victims.

The Australian news channel ABC speaks of 27 female victims this year, almost double the same period last year.