To stop women's violent deaths, we have to speak to boys

According to Destroy the Joint's "Counting Dead Women" campaign, Hannah is allegedly the 18^th woman in Australia to be killed by men's violence in 2024. We are 15 weeks into the year.

This follows the alleged killing of at least 64 women in Australia in 2023. These deaths are preventable and yet they feel devastatingly common in Australia. This is a national crisis.

This death has occurred less than six months after the horrific killing of 21-year-old Sydney teacher Lilie James allegedly by her 23-year-old ex-boyfriend, Paul Thijssen.

Both cases demonstrate so starkly why a concerted and sustained focus on young men and boys is essential to eliminating violence against women in Australia.

When we look to research, the evidence for why we must focus on young men and boys as a core component of any violence prevention strategy is abundantly clear.

Research released earlier this year by The Men's Project at Jesuit Social Services in partnership with Respect Victoria examined the link between adherence to harmful beliefs and rules of what it means to be a "real man" - to be tough, not to show emotion, to be in control and to use violence to gain respect - and the perpetration of violence against women.

The Man Box study found that men who adhere to these rules are five times more likely than those that don't to have perpetrated physical violence against an intimate partner, 33 times more likely to have used fear to coerce a partner into having sex, and almost 35 times more likely to have frequently perpetrated verbal sexual harassment against a woman or girl in a public place.

Dismantling the personal endorsement some men hold towards these Man Box attitudes is only part of what must be considered in order to prevent violence.

As it stands, we are missing crucial opportunities to intervene earlier. Work by Dr Hayley Boxall (The Australian National University) and others at The Australian Institute of Criminology, found that adolescents who use violence against a family member - many of whom have been victims of violence or witnessed violence themselves - were much more likely to use violence against family members in adulthood.

Of course, this is by no means suggesting that victims of violence will inevitably offend.

However, the impacts of trauma and the lived experience of these young people must be at the heart of violence prevention strategies.

Let us be very clear - a focus on young men and boys should not come at a cost to victim-survivors.

There is a dire need to fully fund the scale of crisis responses needed to secure women's safety from violence and to support their recovery and healing.

In the context of a national housing crisis and the increasing cost of living, women experiencing intimate partner violence are confronted with the choice between living with violence or living in poverty, between living in an abusive home or facing homelessness.

But a focus on crisis responses and recovery alone will not stem the tide.

A lack of genuine investment in prevention and early intervention will guarantee that in the years to come, we will continue to count women's deaths on a weekly basis. The statement from victim-survivors in the National Plan to End Violence against Women and Children 2022-2032 puts it plainly: "Abuse and violence is a problem for victims, but it is not the victims' problem."

A sustained and long-term commitment to working with young men and boys, and to tackling the underlying drivers of violence against women, is essential. It will save women's lives, and change the trajectory of the lives of young boys and men.

As the Man Box research shows us, some of the underpinning drivers of violence against women also negatively impact men themselves.

We want to see an Australia where all Australians flourish, and do not use violence.

A central question in violence prevention work is why is the sense of self for some men and boys so tied to dominance over others, especially women?

To the point where they will use violence, sometimes fatal, to assert power and gain control.

There has been some progress. The federal government's healthy masculinities project trial - a $3.5 million commitment announced in October last year - will harness the tremendous influence of sporting clubs, community organisations, schools and social media platforms to educate young people on respectful relationships, positive peer relationships, and healthy masculinities.

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State and territory-based respectful relationships curriculums are crucial although progress as it relates to implementation varies significantly across the country.

Similarly, there is variability regarding the existence of and ambition which underpins violence prevention strategies across different jurisdictions.

More is needed. An incremental approach will not transform a crisis.

Substantial increased investment will not just improve lives, it makes economic sense too.

Violence against women and their children cost the Australian economy an estimated $13.6 billion in the period 2021-22. We must reach young men and boys at scale in all the spaces that they learn, live, play and work in.

We need an urgent increase in commitment to these efforts - if not now, when?