Trigger Warning: This post deals with issues of domestic violence and may be triggering for survivors of abuse.
Violence against women is a global epidemic – and in Australia, about one-third of women will experience some form of violence at the hands of a current or former partner.
One in three.
With that staggering figure in mind, we were desperate to find practical, positive ideas that might go some way to solving the omnipresent, horrific threat of violence against women.
So today, we offer up six ways other people are trying to reverse the alarming rate of domestic violence.
They are proof that feeling helpless is not our only option- and that there IS more we can and should be doing to protect women.
1. Panic buttons for when perpetrators are nearby.
In Brazil, panic buttons with GPS tracking are given to domestic violence victims who obtain restraining orders against their abusers. The devices, once pressed, quickly signal to authorities that a victim needs help, transmit images that help police track down the perpetrator, and even record and store audio for later police use.
The Australian government funded a program trial for a similar button called “B-safe” in Australia a few years ago – but sadly, the program was never renewed after the trial’s completion in 2011.
Rachael McKay, a B-Safe project officer, told 7.30 in 2011 that the program, which won an Australian Crime and Violence Prevention Award, “reduced breaches of intervention orders.”