Page 402 - Week 02 - Thursday, 8 March 2007
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outstanding women in our community here in the ACT, with the ACT International Women’s Day awards.
I just want to acknowledge the importance of today, the International Women’s Day. Traditionally it is a day to celebrate the women’s movement and their achievements over many, many years. It is also a day to celebrate other women across the world. But it is also, importantly, a day to focus on their campaigns that continue in Australia, whether they be around WorkChoices and welfare to work or around the world in relation to the peace movement, for example.
This year’s International Women’s Day theme is “ending impunity for violence against women”, and that means ending the provision of exemptions from punishment particularly in relation to crimes against women. Here in the ACT we know that is not the case; that punishment does exist if a crime, a violent act, is committed against a woman. But that is not to say that violence against women is not an issue here in the ACT, because it is. It is with enormous sadness that in 2007 probably the single biggest issue affecting women in the ACT remains domestic violence.
I would like to acknowledge the efforts of a range of community organisations that work in the community providing support to women, and their children, who are experiencing violence. There is a range of services from crisis counselling services to long-term counselling services to family support programs and to accommodation support. It also crosses over into our child protection system to foster carers and the range of services that are provided through numerous community organisations, too many to name. But today I would like to stand and acknowledge the partnership that they work in with government to support women and children who have experienced or are experiencing violence to get back on their feet and get help that they need.
Today also is the day when we should all reflect on women who are living very difficult lives—again whether that be in the ACT, broadly across the country or across the world. That can be anything from disadvantage, poverty, homelessness or those experiencing discrimination. These issues remain for women across the world and it is the women’s movement’s commitment to international solidarity to advance the interests of women that has kept these campaigns alive.
I went to a function for the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom last week with Dr Foskey. They were celebrating the publication of their journal documenting the week of activity they had here in the Assembly last October. That organisation are celebrating their 91st birthday this year, and when you look at the principles that the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom, or WILPF, originally signed up to 91 years ago, those principles are still relevant today. It was about a group of women across the world that stood up for and sought peaceful solutions to international conflicts. Today we send our thoughts and best wishes to those women who are living, particularly in places like Iraq, amongst a war that should never have started. They really are the people that bear the brunt of war in their community because they are often the ones that have to try to keep their families together at a time when it is very difficult to do that.
So, whilst we acknowledge women in our community—and today we will acknowledge ACT women—it is also a time to sit back and think of those women who today, right at this minute, are living extremely difficult lives.
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