Submission to the Australian Government's consultation on the Second Action Plan (2027– 2032) under the National Plan to End Violence Against Women and Children 2022–2032

Executive Summary

The ARC Centre of Excellence for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (CEVAW) welcomes the opportunity to respond to the Australian Government's consultation on the Second Action Plan (2027–2032). This submission draws together evidence from across CEVAW's research program – spanning technology-facilitated gender-based violence, disaster recovery, polyvictimisation, faith communities, suicide, legal and justice system responses, First Nations women's engagement with the family law system, migration and sex work – organised around our evidence and key messages rather than strictly around the consultation's five priority areas.

A central concern raised throughout this submission is the limited attention given to legal and justice system responses within the current consultation paper, despite these systems being a critical point of contact – and, too often, a point of failure – for victim-survivors seeking safety and accountability. This concern is reflected in the scale of evidence and recommendations set out below on the family courts, domestic violence fatality reviews, restorative justice, specialist family violence courts, First Nations women's engagement with the family law system, migration and sex work.

A full summary of recommendations follows. We would welcome the opportunity to discuss this submission further, including at any further hearings held as part of the consultation.

Summary of Recommendations

• Target technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) prevention and early intervention at the specific pathways and rationalisations perpetrators use, rather than treating TFGBV as one undifferentiated harm. (Priority area 4)
• Invest in digital literacy, platform accountability and meaningful spaces for youth participation, so young people are positioned as partners – not passive victims – in shaping Australia's digital safety response. (Priority area 3)
• Explicitly recognise polyvictimisation and fund research to measure it across the life course in the Australian context. (Priority areas 1 and 2)
• Integrate gender-based violence prevention, screening and response pathways into disaster recovery frameworks, with dedicated, ring-fenced funding. (Priority area 1)
• Recognise, resource and support faith communities' role in both violence prevention and perpetrator accountability. (Priority areas 4 and 2)
• Commission an independent, publicly available evaluation of Victoria's Family Violence Restorative Justice Service. (Priority areas 1 and 5)
• Establish additional specialist family violence courts, and evaluate and further resource those already in operation. (Priority areas 1 and 5)
• Explicitly address the intersection between domestic, family and sexual violence and suicide within the Second Action Plan, including national coronial and death review consistency and recognition of perpetrator suicide threats as coercive control. (Priority areas 1, 3, 4 and 5)
• Strengthen the family courts' role in family safety and homicide prevention, including through the Lighthouse model, economic abuse responses and earlier identification of people using violence. (Priority areas 1, 3, 4 and 5)
• Strengthen First Nations women's engagement with the family law system, including through workforce representation and training, culturally safe access, community legal services and cross-system coordination. (Priority areas 1, 3, 4 and 5)
• Ensure the family law system's role is explicitly and uniformly considered within all Australian domestic violence fatality review processes. (Priority areas 1 and 5)
• Improve pathways to permanent residency and support access for migrant and refugee women experiencing family violence, regardless of migration status. (Priority areas 1 and 5)
• Review anti-discrimination law and Australian Border Force practice affecting sex workers. (Priority areas 1 and 5)
• Pursue broader Commonwealth reforms across economic abuse, victim misidentification, legal assistance shortfalls, national data collection, court forms and judicial education. (Priority areas 1 and 5)