The past year has seen a near 30 per cent increase in intimate partner homicides in Australia, and community services on the frontline are dismayed by the government’s response. Photo: Simona Pilolla.
A Canberra community legal centre on the ACT frontline of the national gender-based violence crisis is seeking community support in light of a Federal Budget that has placed them in a “precarious” situation.
Representatives of the Women’s Legal Centre ACT, a community service that provides the territory’s women with free specialist legal representation, support and advocacy, said last month’s Federal Budget failed to make any meaningful investment in addressing gender-based violence.
“We – the Women’s Legal Centre but also services like ours across the Territory as well as the network of community services we work with on a daily basis – were pretty shocked and dismayed by last month’s budget,” Women’s Legal Centre ACT CEO Elena Rosenman said.
“There seemed to be such a big mismatch between the community’s expectations of how the government should respond to gender-based violence and what happened on budget day.
“It has put us, and other services like us, in the most precarious funding situation we’ve found ourselves in in recent history.”
The past year has seen a near 30 per cent increase in intimate partner homicides in Australia, and the Women’s Legal Centre ACT needs funding to continue its vital work in response to this growing crisis.
“Over the last few years, and particularly since COVID, the centre has noticed an escalation in the severity of violence, the risk to our clients and, as a result, the complexity of the legal matters they’re coming to us for help with,” Ms Rosenman said.
“We continue to see domestic and family violence-related deaths here in the ACT, and each of those deaths is an intolerable loss for these women, their families and our community.”
Local family law firm Parker Coles Curtis has responded with support for the Women’s Legal Centre ACT by matching all donations to the centre in June and July, up to $10,000.
The initiative effectively doubles community contributions until the end of July, potentially raising up to $20,000 in vital funds for the centre.
Parker Coles Curtis is doubling donations to the Women’s Legal Centre ACT until 31 July to help tackle the scourge of gender-based violence. Photo: Woman’s Legal Centre.
Ms Rosenman said it was an empowering move for the Canberra community she knew wanted change.
“The centre has been part of the Canberra community for almost 30 years … I know people in Canberra think of us as a core service that should be available and they’re extremely supportive of the centre being able to not just continue to exist, but to grow and change to continue to meet the needs of women in Canberra,” she said.
“We already receive support from them daily, through word-of-mouth referrals from within the community and through volunteer support, on which we rely greatly. This year alone volunteer solicitors have helped 167 women through our service.
“We also know there’s ongoing agitation and anxiety in the broader community about what’s happening in relation to gender-based violence in Canberra, and that was visually represented by the hundreds upon hundreds who marched across the bridge in May.
“Now, we want anyone looking for a really practical way to support women in Canberra affected by gender-based violence to know that they can double their impact right at this moment thanks to Parker Coles Curtis – one of our pro bono partners whose lawyers already donate their time and are, for the third year in a row, donating resources.”
The funds will be used primarily to cover legal disbursement costs such as filing and serving documents, specialist reports and other costs associated with the legal system and practical material aid such as emergency food, fuel and transport, baby supplies and childcare.
This is critical, as most of the centre’s clients have no or very low incomes and often lack access to funds as they escape domestic violence.
Parker Coles Curtis co-Director Debra Parker said the decision to launch the initiative was an easy one for the firm.
“As specialist family law practitioners in the Canberra community, we understand the value of legal assistance,” she said. “The Women’s Legal Centre ACT is a crucial part of our community, making sure that all women can access legal advice when they need it. We are proud to support them.”
Make a tax-deductible donation here to double your impact on the Women’s Legal Centre ACT.
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