TRIGGER WARNING: Please note this article discusses themes of domestic violence and sexual assault.
Phil Cleary is no stranger to male violence.
In 1987, his sister Vicki was stabbed to death by her ex-boyfriend as she parked her car outside the day care centre where she worked. At trial the killer, who we’ve chosen not to name, claimed Vicki had sworn at him (although there were no witnesses to this allegation) and that he lost control. He was acquitted of murder by way of the provocation defence and served less than four years in jail.
“In essence, there was nothing Vicki could have done to avoid wearing the mantle of provocateur,” Cleary, 71, said, adding he cannot understand how the law of provocation, which was abolished in 2005 after extensive campaigning by him, could have existed with impunity in the first place.
“It could only exist because the society was either indifferent or complicit in the patriarchal construct and the misogyny of that law.”
Cleary is calling for a comprehensive change of direction in the government’s response to male violence and what he calls “a war on women” in Australia.
“Overwhelmingly when a woman is murdered by a man known to her, it is in the context of separation,” he said.
“We’re looking at mental health questions. We’re looking at alcohol, we’re discussing pornography.
“I’m all for having a discussion about the features of male life and the features of society that might contribute to misogyny, but it has to be a discussion that looks properly at structural questions.
“It must be seen in the context of the structural question of patriarchy and principles of ownership of women.”
Cleary claimed the current system of providing help was too clinical, and the detached atmosphere of many services were a deterrent for many women escaping violence.
“We’ve got to have a much more personalised approach to this with case management in localities,” he added. “That management should be experienced people, people with lived experience of men’s violence, who are assisting women in their passage through this difficult time and in their proceedings with the police force.”
We don’t have a generation to wait. How many more women are going to be killed in that timeframe?
Chanel Contos, a globally known consent and sexual violence activist, said Australian society instils and perpetuates violence and destructive behaviour in young boys.
“They (the Australian government) need to look at bigger picture interventions,” she told Central News.
“We know that rates of domestic violence go up 40 per cent when there is a grand final on, so why have we not looked at the intersection between competitive sport, male violence, alcohol and gambling?”
Contos said the issue was deeply intertwined with the “income pillars” of industries that are the backbone of Australia’s culture and economy, and called for further regulation around pornography.
“There is increasing evidence to say that pornography can have detrimental effects on sexual behaviours and attitudes and understandings – so why are we not stepping up and intervening?” she asked.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese pledged millions of dollars in the 2024 annual budget to establish programs and fund safe housing to protect women and children escaping violence. And, the government has announced more funding for its 10-year national plan to end violence against women and children which relaunched in 2022 after failing to reach its targets in 2010.
Contos said the actions taken by government, however, were inadequate.
“We don’t have a generation to wait,” she added. “How many more women are going to be killed in that timeframe?
“And for every one woman that’s killed how many more thousands are in dire situations?”
If you or someone you know needs help, please contact:
National Domestic Family and Sexual Violence Support Services 1800RESPECT/1800737732
LifeLine 131114 NSW Sexual Violence Helpline 1800 424 017
Main image of Vicki Cleary supplied.
