On Sunday April 28, thousands gathered to march to Parliament House at Commonwealth Park, the last of the seventeen rallies in Australia over the weekend to demand action on men’s violence against women.
Sarah Williams, founder and CEO of What Were You Wearing (WWYW), an advocacy organisation opposing sexual violence, began the demonstration by asking everyone to remain respectful and peaceful. She also requested that government members in attendance — including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese — commit to the five demands of the rally, as had been stated in rallies prior to Canberra.
Men, women, children, and dogs made up the crowd that marched two and a half kilometres to Parliament House, shutting the southbound lanes of the Commonwealth Avenue bridge. The sun was bearing down but there were good spirits in the crowd, with friendly conversation between demonstrators interspersed with protest chants.
After a Welcome to Ngunnawal Country from Aunty Violet on the lawns at the Front of Parliament House, Sarah Williams shared her lived experience of sexual, intimate partner, and family violence, homelessness, and police misconduct. She also emphasised the disproportionate effects of sexual and domestic violence on First Nations, queer, and disabled communities.
Sarah then asked the politicians in the crowd whether they would commit to four of the five listed national demands to end men’s violence.
Number one: “Will you announce today that men’s violence is a national emergency?”. Albanese did not indicate a response. Members of the crowd responded with cries of ‘shame’.
Number two: “Forty-eight hours, media has to wait before posting a victim’s face…can we start the chat about locking that in the next three months?” Albanese gave no response.
Number three: “We’re asking for mandatory victim blaming prevention training for frontline workers, first responders, and now media personnel…we want them to have to do a module like the RSA…can we get any commitment?”. There was no response from the Prime Minister. Eventually, Greens MP Emma Davidson came to the front of the crowd to support demand number three.
Number four: “Can we have a national sexual violence action plan separate to the current DV one?” Still no indication or clear response from Albanese. At this point someone from the crowd shouted, “Why are you even here?”
There was notable disappointment from the lack of response provided by the PM, but the rally continued on. Sarah resumed talking about the needs of young people, and said she would talk to the government later. It was at this point Anthony Albanese stood up from his spot on the grass, and began walking towards the front. Williams, clearly uncomfortable, took the microphone from the stand to ensure he didn’t grab it and begin speaking.
A video later shared by the ABC, showed Albanese saying, “do you want me to speak or not, I’m the Prime Minister?” Williams’ response to this was embedded within her address to the crowd, “I actually, to be honest, I don’t really want anyone to speak…I’m happy for my WWYW team to talk with the ministers, hear what they have to say, and then consider them speaking in the next ten minutes, but I’m not having any attacks to myself or my organisation”.
Albanese was given the microphone after the crowd shouted for him to speak. The PM claimed that his office had asked to speak but was denied. Williams and the WWYW team denied this at the time and have addressed it publicly since, revealing that the PM’s office actually stated Albanese was more than happy not to speak and just be in attendance. This caused Williams to cry, which he noticed but continued to speak.
Albanese said change was needed, including to the culture and the legal system, but did not elaborate on how this would be achieved. He did state that focus needed to be on the perpetrators and prevention strategies. Albanese then announced a cabinet meeting for Wednesday May 1st and listed what his government has done so far.
Albanese stated,“I know we must do better, that’s why I’m here….this is a national crisis”. He stopped short of calling men’s violence a “national emergency”, on semantic grounds as he stated it is a term reserved for “natural disasters”.
The PM then exited, taking the majority of the media crews with him. He did not speak at any length with Williams or the other core members of WWYW before departing.
Albanese has since received a mass of criticism for his behaviour at the rally. Sarah Williams released a statement late on Sunday night, describing the PM’s actions as an abuse of power and display of entitlement.
“Just because you are the Prime Minister of this country does not mean you get to use your title to scare a young woman into letting you speak,” the statement reads.“To have him hear my lived experience, see my vulnerability and then have the audacity to lie was appalling.”.
Albanese has indirectly responded to the criticism simply by stating across interviews that the day was an “emotional” one for people involved. He has not contacted Sarah or WWYW since the rally.
There were more speakers at the rally following Albanese’s speech. Kupa Matangira, a young human rights activist, described the lives of some of the women murdered this year by men, emphasising that there is a crisis of male violence in Australia. Nazia Ahmed, CEO of Social Outcomes Lab and founder of Her Kitchen Table, labelled domestic violence as terrorism, echoing recent calls from Rosie Batty to acknowledge men’s violence as a form of domestic terrorism.
Sandra Rajic, a counsellor who works with men who use violence, spoke to how men’s violence is a norm and an oppressive regime. She drew attention to the difference in media coverage on migrant and Indigenous women murdered compared to white women. Rajic also criticised conventional media coverage labelling male violence as a “crime of passion”.
Independent Senator David Pocock acknowledged that the epidemic of male violence was a national emergency and not a women’s issue but rather a men’s issue. “The way for women to feel safe is for men to change their behaviour,” he said, advocating for social change and for men to hold one another accountable. Pocock acknowledged the presence of the Labor MPs, recognising it was an advancement from Liberal governments, but pushed for women’s safety to be considered with the same urgency as issues of migration. He also called on the government to provide long-term funding for women’s services and to raise pension and welfare payments.
Statistically speaking, two more women will be killed in Australia by the end of this week. The names of the 32 women killed by men this year are:
- Janice Walker
- Nerol Doble
- Alison Robinson
- Keira Marshall
- Alana Martin
- Antoinette Tozer
- Vyleen White
- Donna Baraket
- Samira Sardar Kamaleddine
- Amarjit Kaur
- Rebecca Young
- Min Cho
- Bonnie Lee Anderson
- Natasha Nibizi
- Samantha Murphy
- Unnamed women
- Joanne Perry
- Chaithanya (Swetha) Madhagani
- Mauwa (Melanie) Kizenga
- Zomi Frankcom
- Unnamed woman
- Hannah McGuire
- Dr Ashlee Good
- Dawn Singleton
- Jade Young
- Pikria Darchia
- Yixuan Cheng
- Tara Marie Morrison
- Lesley Stillman
- Molly Ticehurst
- Emma Bates
WWYW is planning a National Strike on May 20 in reaction to the government not committing to any action. More details on the strike are expected in the coming days.
Resources
- National Sexual Assault & Domestic Violence Counselling line: 1800 737 732
- Full Stop Australia: 1800 385 578
- Lifeline: 13 11 14 (Lifeline provides 24-hour crisis counselling)
- Blue Knot Foundation Helpline: 1300 657 380 (Blue Knot Foundation provides support and resources to adult survivors of child abuse and complex trauma)
- 13YARN: 13 92 76 (24/7 crisis support line for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people)
- National Disability Abuse and Neglect Hotline: 1800 880 052
- Brother to Brother: 1800 435 799 (24 hour crisis line for Aboriginal men, staffed by Aboriginal men with lived experience)
- QLIFE: 1800 184 527 (LGBTQI+ peer support and referral)
- Rainbow DFSV Helpline: 1800 497 212