A federal government-funded advertising campaign against domestic violence has been shelved indefinitely.
At a cost of several million dollars, the series of advertisements designed to target emotional and physical abuse in young people's relationships was scheduled for release on television and in magazines late last year.
The voice-over on the TV advertisement states that "One young man in six says it's OK to pressure a girl to have sex". The ad then argues that "with no respect, you've got no relationship".
Speaking on the ABC's 7.30 Report on February 17, US psychologist Jill Murray, a specialist in the prevention of abuse in young people's relationships, who was invited to launch the campaign, said the ads "would have been groundbreaking... It would have been the perfect model for other countries to follow."
Federal family and community services minister Kay Patterson told the 7.30 Report that the campaign had been delayed, rather than cancelled, because "I want to make sure we get it right".
But according to the federal ALP, a senior government committee pulled the ads because they only portrayed male violence towards women. Labor MP Nicola Roxon told the February 18 Australian: "We have a sort of gang of four of government men who say they don't like the ads because they're uncomfortable about them in some way."
On February 20, Maria Hagias, national chairperson of the Women's Services Network (WESNET), rejected the notion that portraying male violence against women is biased: "It is women and children who suffer from domestic violence. It is a fact. Statistics clearly show that over 90% of perpetrators are male, and overwhelmingly the victims are women and children."
The February 20 Australian reported that Prime Minister John Howard claimed the ads were delayed because they refer people to a web site, which is insufficient. He said victims of domestic violence should be advised to seek assistance from the police or from friends.
What Howard didn't say was that his government's cuts to women's services mean that many women who suffer violence are unable to access assistance. In early 2003, the federal government diverted $7.5 million from anti-domestic violence and sexual assault programs to fund its infamous "anti-terrorist" fridge magnet campaign.
According to Hagias, "Women's refuges turn women away on a daily basis because they are full... How many more women and children need to be killed before we invest as much into this as we do into preventing car accidents?"
Hagias also explained that WESNET was unaware of the existence of the advertising campaign until after it was pulled. WESNET was not consulted about the content of the ads, nor was it contacted to discuss "the impact that such a campaign would have on the capacity of services to deal with increased need".
According to the 1996 Women's Safety Survey, conducted by the Australian Bureau Statistics, 23% of women who have ever been in a relationship have been abused by their spouses at some stage. The study also found that "2.6 million women (or 38% of the adult female population) had experienced one or more incidents of physical or sexual violence since the age of 15".
Violence against women remains a major problem in Australian society. The Coalition government's stalling on the anti-domestic violence advertising campaign reflects its total unwillingness to address the problem.
Kerryn Williams
From Green Left Weekly, March 3, 2004.
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