Cairo: Australia on Monday reaffirmed compensation to the victims of gender-based violence, responding to a landmark inquiry into missing and murdered Aboriginal women and children. The Senate inquiry into ‘Missing and Murdered First Nations Women and Children’ concluded this August with 10 recommendations for the government to consider, the Australia Broadcasting Corporation reported.
According to Anadolu Agency, Aboriginal women are seven times more likely to be homicide victims than non-Indigenous women, with three out of four killed by a current or former partner, statistics show. They are also 33 times more likely to be hospitalized due to family and domestic violence than their non-Indigenous counterparts.
Addressing the Senate, Minister for Indigenous Australians Malarndirri McCarthy said the findings of the inquiry would guide the government’s response to domestic violence, including the inauguration next year of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Family Safety Plan. The development
coincides with the UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, which is annually observed on Nov. 25.
“We are making significant, ongoing investments into services that support First Nations women and children experiencing violence,” McCarthy was quoted as saying. Her remarks referred to a package of $4.4 billion announced in September to tackle gender-based violence and other initiatives, including $194 million set aside to support the safety of First Nations women and children.
Paying respect to domestic violence advocate Kumarn Rubuntja, who died at the hands of her partner, McCarthy said Rubuntja had never been to the capital Canberra before, ‘but that didn’t stop her speaking out for victims of family, domestic and sexual violence.’ Calling gender-based violence a “national shame,” McCarthy emphasized the government’s dedication to supporting First Nations women and children experiencing violence.
Since the colonization of Australia by British settlers in 1788, Aboriginal and T
orres Strait Islander Australians have faced hardships, ranging from the loss of traditional culture and homelands to the forced removal of children and denial of citizenship rights, according to the Australian Human Rights Commission.