In Victoria in the year ending March 2024, family violence reported to police had increased by 3% on the year to March 2023, with almost 96,000 incidents recorded.
There were almost 2,700 arrests of serious family violence perpetrators in Victoria Police’s domestic violence blitz across Melbourne’s south-east between January and early June. Victoria Police has laid charges for more than 7,500 serious offences in just over five months in five of Melbourne’s most heavily impacted areas.
Thirty-nine Australian women have been killed violently in 2024, 17 more than last year. Eight women were killed in June.’ (‘The Age’ 4/7/2024)
Unfortunately, family violence exists in a variety of ways, across all ages, all communities and has no socio-economic boundaries.
The work of Rotary SAFE Families has never been more important to any community or diversity in its information and educational messaging program with 180 presentations given to Rotary Clubs across Australia by Dorothy Gilmour, the recently appointed Zone 8 (Australia, NZ, Papua NG, Pacific Islands) Specialist Leader in Gender Equity, Rotary SAFE Families and Prevention of Domestic Violence.
Workshops have been introduced into the SAFE Families Inclusive Communities Initiative project for Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Communities which is supported by Rotary Melbourne and includes a leadership team with members from Melbourne, Hawthorn, Caroline Springs, Richmond and Kericho in Kenya Rotary Clubs.
Rotary SAFE Families has a comprehensive website HERE and an active Facebook presence.
