Albo up in arms at male violence

Anthony Albanese has declared violence against women to be “far too prevalent” in Australia as police continue investigations into the motivations of the Bondi attacker. Police said on Monday that Joel Cauchi, who fatally stabbed six people, including five women, at Sydney’s Bondi shopping centre on Saturday, may have been targeting women during his rampage. NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb said about eight of the 12 people injured were women and whether the attacker’s motive was driven by gender was an “obvious line of inquiry”.

Mr Albanese on Friday said it was clear rates of violence against women across the country were far too high. “What we know is that violence against women is far too prevalent. It too often occurs from a partner or a family member and we know that the statistic of a woman on average dying every week due to violence from a partner or someone they know, it doesn’t tell the story,” he said. “Numbers don’t tell stories. These are human tragedies, as well, violence has an impact on children who witness it in the home, and we need to do more to combat violence against women.”

Mr Albanese pointed to rallies held in the Victorian town of Ballarat last week, mourning the loss of three local women allegedly killed by male perpetrators in the past two months. He said communities had “had enough” and vowed reducing rates of violence against women and children would be at the top of the national agenda.

According to the research group Counting Dead Women Australia, 24 women have been killed in violent incidents since the start of 2024. Attorney-general Mark Dreyfus told a Family Violence Symposium in Melbourne on Friday that perpetrators of domestic and family violence needed to be held to account.