A long-awaited report that the Morrison government sat on for months has been released, with experts declaring it a "vital piece of evidence" that will chart the path towards eliminating violence against women and children.
Nearly 500 experts, advocates and specialists from across the nation contributed to the consultation report — which is supposed to guide the creation of a new, 10-year national plan to tackle domestic, family and sexual violence — that has now been released.
The Morrison government faced criticism for failing to make the consultation report publicly available, despite it being finalised by researchers at Monash University and passed to the government in January.
Interviewees who took part in the study stressed the need for the next national plan to address violence experienced by often-marginalised groups, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and children, LGBTQIA+ communities, people with a disability, women living in rural areas, and migrant and refugee women.
Stakeholders also said greater emphasis should be placed on violence faced by children, who should be recognised as victims "in their own right", while also warning that sexual violence committed outside the context of a family or intimate relationship should "not fall off the agenda".
They also called for housing to be at the forefront of the new plan and "significant investment" in social housing for people fleeing violence, including long-term housing options.
Researchers at Monash University's gender and family violence prevention centre were contracted by the former government to conduct the research and their report collates the views of hundreds of practitioners, sector leaders, community advocates and policymakers.
Chief investigator Kate Fitz-Gibbon described the report as a "vital piece of evidence" that lists the steps required to eliminate violence against women and children.
"I am thrilled that Minister Rishworth has released the Stakeholder Consultation Report," Professor Fitz-Gibbon said.
"Family, domestic and sexual violence is a national crisis.
The report's release comes ahead of a meeting of federal, state and territory women's safety ministers next Friday, where the Commonwealth hopes to finalise a new, 10-year national strategy to end violence to replace an outdated plan launched by the Gillard government.
Ambitious, clear targets needed to measure progress
While the Morrison government made headway developing the new strategy, a draft released earlier this year was criticised for lacking specific, measurable targets and accountability mechanisms.
Professor Fitz-Gibbon said it contained "gaps" that she hopes Labor will revise.
"There are some clear areas where the new government could really show their commitment in this space," she said.
"Stakeholders repetitively told us that, over the term of the next national plan, we need to develop a range of different targets or measures that show us whether what we're doing is making a difference," she said.
Social Services Minister Amanda Rishworth has pledged to take on board the views of those within the sector as well as victim-survivors, and vowed to make women's safety a "top-order priority".
"We're taking action to achieve gender equality and reduce violence against women and children," she said.
"Women's experiences must be at the centre of what we do and this meeting with state and territory counterparts is an important first step.
Prominent Indigenous leaders have been calling for a standalone plan to deal with the disproportionately high rates of violence faced by Aboriginal women, arguing a one-size-fits-all approach would not yield improvements.
Ms Rishworth said she was committed to working in "genuine partnership" with Indigenous communities to "develop a dedicated plan" for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and children.
National plan title requires reconsideration
The report said the title of the new plan which references "women and children" should be reworked so not to exclude LGBTQIA+ people.
"The next national plan should recognise and address gendered forms of violence without excluding LGBTQIA+ populations from its objectives and target populations," the report states.
"Its current title, therefore, requires reconsideration."
Professor Fitz-Gibbon said participants involved in the consultation process were at odds over the language that should be adopted in the new plan.
She said some argued the use of the term "gender-based violence" would be more inclusive, however others thought it was important to retain "women" in the title, while some preferred to place a greater emphasis on "men's violence" to highlight that men are predominantly the perpetrators.
