25/11/2025
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Today marks the start of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence - a global campaign to raise awareness and call for action to end violence against women and girls.
This year’s focus is on a growing and deeply concerning issue - digital violence. Online abuse is not just toxic, but it’s dangerous, persistent, and designed to intimidate and silence, particularly women in public life. And the consequences are very real, often escalating into offline harm.
Globally, 1 in 3 women experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. Every 10 minutes, a woman or girl is killed by a partner or family member. The online space has become a new frontier for abuse, enabled by weak regulation, anonymity and a lack of accountability.
In Parliament, I’ve called for urgent reforms, including:
•A significant increase in annual funding for frontline services, Legal Aid, and Women’s Legal Services
•A National Domestic Violence Offender Register to support a disclosure scheme like Clare’s Law
•A national review of sentencing laws, and better use of AVOs and electronic monitoring
•Greater investment in safe and affordable housing for women and children fleeing violence
The motion I introduced was unanimously supported, but we are still not seeing the impact we need. In Warringah alone, more than 450 domestic and family violence assaults were reported in the past year. Local police confirm it’s their most frequent call-out. And wait times for support services can stretch to two months, far too long for women in danger.
The 16 Days of Activism is an important reminder that Men must be part of the solution, by challenging toxic behaviours and calling them out when they see them. That’s how we create real, lasting change.
