100 signatures reached
To: State & Federal Government
End The Silence On Sexual Violence
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Hold abusers accountable & empower victim survivors
Reports of rape, abuse of power and failure to take disclosure of abuse seriously in Parliament House is unsurprising to many, if not all, victim-survivors. In fact, 45% of complaints of work place sexual harassment are ignored. 1 in 5 women who report sexual violence at work are labelled as troublemakers, 18% are victimised or ostracised and 17% resign (AHRC_WORKPLACE_SH_2018.pdf (humanrights.gov.au).
We demand
Perpetrators of abuse are held accountable
They are not to retain positions of power or authority, they must demonstrate they are able to function without perpetuating abuse, rape, coercive or controlling behaviours.
Members of parliament who are dismissive or attempt to hide or cover up allegations of sexual assault must also be held accountable for inflicting further trauma on victim survivors.
We demand restorative justice programs be developed, funded and made accessible by the government. We demand that these programs be rolled out as mandatory training in all but prioritise male dominated industry.
Increased funding and resources to the organisations that support victim-survivors of rape and sexual violence such as End Rape on Campus, CASA and Undercurrent Victoria (https://www.undercurrentvic.com/)
Increased support for victim-survivors
Victim-Survivors of rape and sexual violence must be supported and not held responsible for the behaviours of rapists, predators and abusers.
Increase the level of funding to advocacy bodies and improve accessibility to these programs.
Access to Justice
Law reform Sex offenders must demonstrate the steps they took to obtain consent.
In Canada and Tasmania, perpetrators have to demonstrate that they took reasonable steps to obtain consent, we demand to see reforms like these implemented federally.
Improved reporting avenues within institutions, organisations and with the police.
Victim surviours should have the right to speak out about their sexual assault and rape without fear of legal repuccusion.
Call on the women within the Liberal Government to stand up for victim-survivors and stop protecting the patriarchal system that protects rapists and abusers. Politicians must be held accountable for sexually harassing/assaulting other members of parliament, regardless of whether the victims are politicians or staff.
Reform alone will not change the patriarchal, colonial, white supremacist and capitalist foundations on which this government and “justice” system is built. We must be applying hard and constant pressure to these systems in order to receive a just and fair society for all people regardless of race, class, disability or gender identity.
Petitions mean nothing without active support. Please contact us at [email protected] to join the campaign, follow us on Facebook at Loud, Angry & Not Sorry and Twitter at @LoudPod.
Why is this important?
Rape culture in parliament threatens our involvement in the political process. Parliament, in its current state, lacks representation of oppressed gender groups. First Nations women, trans and gender diverse people are particularly underrepresented in our legal system. The endemic sexual abuse that is perpetrated in parliament threatens the paltry representation that oppressed gender groups have ascertained thusfar and makes it difficult for those marginalised groups to speak up against gendered violence and support victim surviours for fear of receiving their own workplace bullying, relocation or loss of livelihood.
For too long we have worked within the system and compromised with the state on our bodily autonomy, our rights and our safety.
We say enough. It’s time to End the Silence on Sexual Violence.