ABOUT the same number of people attended an anti-violence rally at Raby Bay on Wednesday night as are killed each year in domestic violence incidents in Australia.
Led by mayor Karen Williams and deputy mayor Wendy Boglary, about 100 people lit candles in a vigil at the harbour to remember the victims of this often hidden issue.
The vigil also featured the launch of a people-power campaign.
Mayor Karen Williams said the Redlands Working Against Violence Support Service campaign “Non-violence is contagious; Give it to your friends’’ was just one element of the vigil.
"Each year in Australia more than 100 women, children and men die because of domestic and family violence and this event is an opportunity to remember these people, as well as those who continue to suffer from domestic violence," she said.
WAVSS general manager Linda-Ann Northey called on the Redlands community to spread the message that non-violence must be recognised as the norm rather than the exception.
"As a society we tend to focus on the incidents of violence and our efforts to stop the violence rather than focusing on and the fact that the majority of people in our community aren't violent or abusive and celebrating them as role models," she said.
"This campaign is designed to reverse that by encouraging non-violence through community activism and word-of-mouth promotion.
"...We started operating in the Redlands about 12 months ago and in that time we have had in excess of 2000 contacts from people who need support.
"The Redlands is a bit different to other areas in that the domestic violence occurring locally is not necessarily in the lower demographic areas, often it is in the more affluent areas where some people may not expect.
"Local examples of domestic and family violence we have encountered include men using technology to monitor their wives or partners.’’
A report titled A Platform for Action released by Social Services Minister Christian Porter shows that understanding the cultural context of violence against women was critical to reducing violence in culturally and linguistically diverse communities.
The report highlighted that many new arrivals to Australia may have limited or no understanding of Australia’s laws in relation to issues such as family and domestic violence and other complex forms of violence and abuse.
Cr Williams said the Redlands campaign was the result of WAVSS work last year.
Council was supporting the campaign by putting messages on waste trucks and fleet vehicles.
"We want people to see the non-violence message as they walk around the city so we are plastering it where we can, including on waste trucks, council cars and bus shelters," she said.
"We are also distributing more than 70,000 bumper stickers to residents, schools and council staff and encouraging everyone to put them on their vehicles.’’
