Five hundred people rallied on March 29 to call on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to implement changes to stop gendered and domestic violence against women.
The protest, called by , assembled at the Newcastle Museum and marched to Nobbys Beach.
“A woman, on average, is killed every nine days by a current or former partner,” the group said. “In the past seven days we have lost five women to the hands of men.”
A 21-year-old woman was found dead in Mayfield on March 26, following an alleged domestic violence-related stabbing by her ex-partner. A three-year-old child was at the scene.
The huge turnout, at very short notice, and the speakers’ defiance shows how angry people are.
As one woman said: “After one man was killed by a coward’s punch in Newcastle, they changed the lockout law. But they haven’t done that for women.”
Another said that more than 87% of women reported feeling blamed for being the victim of an assault.
One woman complained about the authorities’ hypocrisy, telling 鶹ӳ: “The [police] can’t put a paroled woman-beater in jail, who then kills her, but they’ll lock up a protester in 10 minutes flat.”
[Ahas been called for Saturday April 9.]