Fair Agenda

Women’s safety advocates have today responded to news of Bettina Arndt’s “MenToo” conference by calling out its harmful implications for survivors of sexual violence, as well as highlighting the need for a better system that can actually deliver justice. 

Survivor-advocate Dani Villafaña said: “Already the legal system is so deeply traumatic for someone who has been raped to experience. To suggest that we need any changes that further skew the system to protect people perpetrating sexual assault is both dangerous and absurd.”

“We have an Australian Law Reform Commission Inquiry underway because of how deeply harmful this system is. To suggest we need changes that would hurt victim-survivors even more is disrespectful and deeply distressing for the brave survivors who are doing such important work speaking out about their experiences and the work that desperately needs to be done to improve the current criminal legal system.” she added.

“The ‘men too’ ‘movement’ are right about one thing - right now the legal system isn’t delivering justice when it comes to sexual assault - but that’s because it’s failing most victim-survivors.” said Renee Carr

“The criminal legal system is failing victim-survivors at so many points - starting with the ability to get the immediate medical care you need and any potential forensic evidence collected. I think most Australians would be surprised to learn that support is not always available if and when you need it. ” said Renee Carr, Executive Director of Fair Agenda.

“As it currently stands, the system disincentives a woman who has been sexually assaulted from coming forward to police or seeking findings through court at all.” Ms Carr added.

"The double standard in the current system is a joke. Perpetrators are literally platformed while victims have to put their lives on hold, staying silent around legal proceedings for risk of causing a mistrial or affecting sentencing if there's a conviction.” said Sarah Rosenberg, Executive Director of With You We Can.

“We are angry. My friend and survivor advocate Sarah Williams of What Were You Wearing is working quickly to coordinate a protest of the event.” she added.

Sarah Williams, founder of What Were You Wearing Australia, herself said, "Enough is enough. Victim-survivors have been through enough, and we urge the community to stand with us to show we don’t support this harmful rhetoric".

Michael Bradley, lawyer, Chair of RASARA, and Director of the Grace Tame Foundation added: “The promotion for this event talks about ‘restoring the presumption of innocence’. It is a false narrative; the presumption is under no threat whatsoever. 

One in five Australian women has been the victim of a sexual assault. For these women, there is less than a 1 per cent chance that their rapist has been arrested, prosecuted and convicted of the crime. These are the bare numerical facts of system failure. The suggestion that men are the real victims of this system is plain wrong.” Mr Bradley added. 

Some actual facts:

• Official public safety data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows 2 million women have experienced sexual assault since the age of 15. (source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Personal Safety Survey Data: 2021-22 financial year).
• When we look at legal outcomes for those women, the vast majority (92%) of women who experienced sexual assault by a male did not report the most recent incident to police. (Source Queensland Government, Department of Justice & Attorney-General Sexual Violence Statistics, )  
• In 2022, 32,146 incidents of sexual assault were recorded by police. (Source: Australian bureau of Statistics, Recorded Crime - Victims: 2022)

For seven years the Fair Agenda movement has been calling for the government to intervene to hold universities to account on this issue - calling for a Taskforce or other intervention to deliver the systemic interventions so desperately needed, by providing: oversight and monitoring, transparency, an effective complaints mechanism, and actual accountability on this issue. 

This new Draft Action Plan provides a viable strategy to deliver that. It was developed over recent months in consultation with representatives of Fair Agenda, and our campaign collaborators End Rape on Campus Australia, The STOP Campaign, National Union of Students.

Yesterday, our team and campaign partners took a moment to reflect on and celebrate just how big a deal this proposed Plan could be if it’s implemented. We wanted to celebrate that with you - as the thousands of people who have helped amplify, resource and maintain the pressure on this issue over seven years. Because what we are doing together is making a difference.

Here’s what what’s contained in the Draft Action Plan:

• New Standards: the introduction of a National Code that would create rules for universities and residences related to: evidence-based prevention, management of sexual violence reports, the provision of student support and academic adjustments.

• Oversight of the new National Code’s implementation.
  
  
• A new complaints avenue: The establishment of a new National Student Ombudsman who would have the power to handle student complaints about their providers’ and recommend that a Vice-Chancellor do things like refund a student’s fees.
  
  
• Transparency: requiring annual reporting from universities and residences on things like: disclosures, reports, satisfaction with reporting pathways and processes, disciplinary processes and outcomes - to both the federal Education Minister, and parliament.
  
  
• Accountability: The draft Plan includes a specific proposed commitment to “strengthen provider accountability for systemic issues relating to gender-based violence”. The details about specific powers and sanctions that would be available are still to be determined, but we believe this Draft Plan and other concurrent university reform processes underway puts us on track to see institutions finally held to account. 
  
  
• Critically, the Draft Action Plan emphasises the need to continue engaging and consulting with students and victim-survivors - which is vital to making sure approaches are fit for purpose into the future. 

Yesterday Fair Agenda and our campaign partners had a chance to address Education Ministers around the country about why these changes are so important. Now the Ministers have released that draft Action Plan for ‘further consultation and detailed design work’. It’s a next step to figuring out the specifics so that the government can fund and implement these proposed actions, and actually make  university communities safer. 

As governments prepare to consult on this proposed action plan, and how it can and should be implemented - we have to keep the pressure up to make sure the promise of this Draft Action Plan is realised.

We expect that the prospect of meaningful consequences will make any universities and residences who have been failing students and survivors in this area extremely concerned. And we expect they’ll throw their extensive resources at influencing this consultation and design process, to try to minimise the financial and reputation risks to their organisations carrying on with business as usual. That’s why it’s so important we keep up the pressure and maintain momentum for the transformative reforms proposed in the Draft Action Plan today.

We know our movement’s campaigning has been making a difference. In partnership with our friends at End Rape on Campus Australia the Fair Agenda movement has helped keep this issue on the political and media agenda for years. We have ensured it was recognised as a key and priority area for reform in the University Accords process earlier this year. We have met with Ministers and parliamentarians across the country and political spectrum to convince them of the need for action, and the importance of our criteria for reform. Now we need to carry that momentum forward to ensure the promise of this Action Plan is delivered. 

The Fair Agenda team will be in touch soon about next steps, and how we can collectively realise this change. But in the meantime we wanted to reach out and celebrate this update - because it’s a really big deal, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the consistent pressure for the Fair Agenda movement; helping to back the calls of survivors, students, and our many campaign partners over the years. Thanks for all the ways you’ve been part of this campaign.

Renee, Sharna, Dani & Liz for Fair Agenda

PS - Fair Agenda has only been able to keep up the pressure on this issue over the past seven years with the generous support of members and supporters around the country. Can you chip in to help us keep up the pressure to make the proposed Action Plan a reality?

As the Referendum date approaches, the Fair Agenda team wanted to share some resources that you might find helpful to inform how you vote, as well as the resources and support services available for First Nations people who are being impacted by the debate. 

The Fair Agenda movement exists to campaign for a fair and just future - one where we can all live with safety, security and agency over our lives, no matter our gender. To achieve that future, we must address the historical and ongoing marginalisation of First Nations people, especially First Nations women.

We know that laws and policies are more effective when those of us affected by them have a say. But all too often governments have ignored First Nations people when making important decisions about them - perpetuating systemic injustices including violence, health disparities, and other forms of inequality. 

So before you write your answer to the referendum question; we want to share these messages from First Nations advocates about why writing Yes matters: 

Larissa Baldwin-Roberts on how millions of us writing Yes makes so much more possible. 

Dr Jackie Huggins AM, Professor Marcia Langton AO and Emily Carter on why the Voice is so important for future generations.

Nova Peris OAM on the way that Australian laws since colonisation have been used to exclude and hurt Aboriginal people; and the opportunity a Voice would create.

Tanya Hosch speaking just one day after she left hospital, about listening to the voices of communities who know the problems they face and solutions they need.

Antoinette Braybrook on how the Voice creates an opportunity for First Nations people to apply a lived experience lens to government policies.

Amelia Telford on focusing on the shared vision of First Nations Communities, and seeing the Referendum as a step along the journey to realising those shared visions.

Ensuring First Nations people have a seat at the table and a greater say in their future is critical to realising a fairer and better future.

But every representative body for First Nations people in the past has been torn up by subsequent governments who didn’t like what they were saying. When the majority of us write Yes in the referendum, we can create a permanent representative body that will represent communities and can say what needs to be said.

Right across Australia there are examples where Aboriginal health, housing, education and justice are significantly improving. These programs are most successful when they are created, run and controlled by Aboriginal people who have the cultural knowledge and hands on experience of what works best. 

The Fair Agenda team holds respect and understanding for the diverse range of opinions held by First Nations advocates and communities inside and outside of our movement. We agree that change needs to be much bigger than just a Voice - that we need transformative change. 

If the overwhelming majority of people write Yes, we will have the momentum for big reforms and transformative changes including treaties, land rights, truth-telling and justice. Over the next decade, we can work together to leave future generations more united, where First Nations people are respected, listened to and treated with dignity.

We are also conscious that the public discussion around the Voice is having a significant impact on First Nations people - which is why we also want to share National Indigenous Television’s advice and resources from First Nations mental health professionals about the support services and online safety resources available to mob.

In solidarity,

The Fair Agenda team 

Remember, you have to be registered to vote to have a say in the referendum. If you’ve recently changed your name or address, you might need to update your details on the electoral roll. Go here to register or change your details: https://www.aec.gov.au/referendums/enrolling.htm  

You can find out more and get involved in the Yes23 campaign here.

Here's what you need to know: last year the Albanese Government commissioned a major review of how universities work.

Fair Agenda and End Rape on Campus Australia have been working hard to ensure that review (the Universities Accord process) recommended action for student safety.

Last week, the Government made the Expert Panel's Interim Report public. Alongside 70 different reforms floated for long-term consideration; student safety was explicitly mentioned amongst five immediate areas for action.

The Education Minister, in announcing the Government's response to that Report  committed to begin progressing action in all of those five areas - which is really good news, and a significant win for our campaign!

The Minister was even asked about his commitment to action on this issue during his National Press Club appearance. You can watch the question and his response here.

Since then, we've been keeping up the momentum with continued media pressure.  

You can see Fair Agenda's TV interview on ABC Afternoon Briefing talking about the need for a Taskforce on university sexual assault here.

Then the Saturday Paper released an exclusive about Universities Australia cancelling a sexual assault awareness campaign.

Then, last week during a Senate Inquiry into consent, our campaign partners End Rape on Campus Australia, and other advocates, ensured the failures and harmful actions of universities were put under the microscope again, and ensured our calls for the government to create an independent accountability mechanism were echoed.

Then last week during the Senate's Inquiry into Consent laws - this issue was raised again, and university representatives were questioned about their actions in this area. You can see some coverage of that part of the Inquiry here.

Then, when Government Minister Amanda Rishworth appeared on Insiders last weekend - she was also asked about the Government's commitment in this area. You can see her response here; and the Panel's further reflections here.

This is really important progress - thank you to all of the survivors, students and advocates who have been part of advocating for change on this issue over the recent years and decades.

The commitments the Government have made so far are really encouraging. But we still don't yet have the accountability or oversight we need to deliver meaningful change for students. So we need to keep up the pressure - to keep our campaign ask on the agenda; and resource the behind-the-scenes work needed to ensure the details of any proposed reform will actually work for students and survivors who need it.

Can you help support this campaign during the critical next months?

Add your voice to the call for change here: https://www.fairagenda.org/uni_safety

You can donate to help resource the vital next steps here.

An open letter to the Albanese Government, 

We write as a united group of current and former students, survivors, advocates, and service providers - calling for the federal government to urgently intervene to address university failures to prevent and respond adequately to sexual violence in their communities.

Survivors, student leaders and advocacy groups have been speaking out about sexual violence in university context for decades. 

In the six years since the release of the landmark Change the Course report, university leaders have been claiming to have ‘zero tolerance’ for sexual assault. Yet the recent National Student Safety Survey shows continuing shocking rates of sexual assault and harassment in university spaces, and ongoing university failures to provide affected students with adequate avenues for support. 

If nothing changes, based on NSSS figures, at least 14,300 students will be sexually assaulted in university contexts each coming year. For many, the university’s response will compound their trauma, and adversely impact their academic outcomes, their ability to complete their degree, and their capacity to pursue their chosen career. 

Universities need to implement evidence-based prevention education programming and improve their responses to incidents of sexual harm. They need to be more transparent about the use of sexual violence in their communities, and how they are responding and holding perpetrators accountable. 

Universities have been repeatedly provided expert advice [1] on good practice and have chosen not to implement it. 

In the six years since the release of the Change the Course report, the higher education regulator, TEQSA, has failed to hold a single university accountable for not adequately addressing or responding to reports of sexual assault and/or harassment. [2]

 This has gone on long enough. The Albanese Government must intervene to protect student safety. 

We are calling on the government to establish an independent oversight and accountability mechanism with a mandate to address sexual violence at universities.

 This must: 

• be independent of universities and residences;
• be led by experts in sexual violence who can assesses the quality of university approaches;
• have authority to compel institutional transparency around incidents and responses; and
• be able to implement meaningful sanctions when basic standards are not met.

 To achieve the Government’s goals to address gender-based violence, it must intervene in the university context. 

We need urgent action, and we need it now. 

Signed: 

Abby Kennedy, 2017 National Union of Students Women’s Officer

Dr Adrianna Haro, graduate of the University of Newcastle Alev Saracoglu, Women’s Officer, University of Sydney Students' Representative Council

ANU Students' Association (ANUSA)

Australian Law Students’ Association

Australian Women's Health Network

Caleb Watts, Welfare Officer, UNSW Student Representative Council

Darcie Cliff, Vice President of Indigenous Affairs, What Were You Wearing Australia

Eli Spencer, Queer Officer, QUT Guild

End Rape on Campus Australia

Fair Agenda

Full Stop Australia

Georgette Mouawad, 2021 National Union of Students Women’s Officer

Georgia Thomas, President, University of Adelaide Student Representative Council

Heidi La Paglia Reid, 2016 National Union of Students Women’s Officer

Humaira Nasrin, 2020 National Union of Students Women’s Officer

Julia Saphia Grant, former President of University of Tasmania Women’s Collective and Student Union Disability Officer

Kush Ketan Modha, Board Member, University of South Australia Student Association

KWILS – Katherine Women’s Legal Service

Linnea Burdon-Smith, 2016 ANU Students Association Women’s Officer

Lucy Fawcett, Magill Undergraduate Representative, University of South Australia Student Association

Manisha Kulasinghe, Women’s Officer, James Cook University Student Association

MSI Australia

National Association of Services against Sexual Violence

National Union of Students

National Women’s Safety Alliance

Nguyen Khanh Tran, Disabilities Officer, University of Sydney Students' Representative Council

No Student Left Behind - Western Sydney University

Oliver Shephard-Bayly, Board Member, University of South Australia Student Association

Rape and Sexual Assault Research and Advocacy

Rhiannon Halling, She's a Crowd & Women With Disabilities Australia

Sarah Williams, University of Newcastle Survivor Advocates Advisory Chair & Founder, What Were You Wearing Australia

SASVic (Sexual Assault Services Victoria)

Siahne Hills, Women’s Officer, QUT Guild

Tegan Stettaford, Postgraduate Student Representative, University of Newcastle Students’ Association

The STOP Campaign

Top End Women's Legal Service Inc

University of Melbourne Student Union Women's Department

University of Newcastle Students Association

University of Sydney SRC Women’s Collective

University of Sydney Students' Representative Council (SRC)

UQ Union

What Were You Wearing Australia

Women's Legal Services Australia

Women's Legal Service Tasmania

Women's Legal Service WA

Zahra Bayani, Students Representative City East Campus, University of South Australia Student Association

[1] See: Andrea Durbach and Kirsten Keith, On Safe Ground: A Good Practice Guide for Australian Universities (Australian Human Rights Centre, UNSW, August 2017) https://www.humanrights.unsw.edu.au/sites/default/files/documents/AHR0002_On_Safe_Ground_Good_Practice_Guide_online.pdf, Universities Australia, Guidelines for University Responses to Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment (20 July 2018) https://www.universitiesaustralia.edu.au/Media-and-Events/media-releases/Students-at-the-centre--new-guidelines-for-university-responses-to-sexual-harassment-and-sexual-assault#.XPMUjy2B1p9, Universities Australia, Sexual Harm Response Guidelines 2023, https://www.universitiesaustralia.edu.au/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/UA-2023-008-Sexual-Harm-Response-Guidelines-web-v3.pdf, and Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency, Good Practice Note: Preventing and responding to sexual assault and sexual harassment in the Australian higher education sector (9 July 2020) https://www.teqsa.gov.au/sites/default/files/good-practice-note-preventing-responding-sexual-assault-sexual_harassment-v2-0-web.pdf

[2] TEQSA has revealed in Senate Estimates that it has undertaken more than 60 individual assessments of universities’ sexual assault and harassment policies and procedures, including 29 finalised complaints, 12 occasions where TEQSA engaged with seven universities in relation to media reports, and five occasions where universities had notified TEQSA of a matter of concern related to sexual assault or sexual harassment. See: Senate Standing Committees on Education and Employment, Parliament of Australia, Budget Estimates 2022–2023, Question on Notice SQ22-000390, Question on Notice SQ22-000173, and Question on Notice SQ22-00039.

__________

You can sign the petition to hold universities accountable for failures on sexual violence here.