HACCI event addresses domestic violence on International Women’s Day

The Hellenic Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (HACCI) departed from typical International Women’s Day (IWD) platitudes at the Amora Hotel Riverwalk in Richmond on Monday, March 3, confronting the grim reality of domestic violence and its deadly consequences for women.

Speakers Kate Fitz-Gibbon, Chair of Respect Victoria, highlighted the national crisis, while Sylvia Hadjiantoniou, PRONIA CEO, focused on its impact within the Greek Australian community. Professor Alex Christou moderated the panel.

HACCI Chair Fotini Kypraios declared, “We’ve been doing this for over a decade. This year, we’re not talking about the pay gap. We’re talking about 101. A hundred-and-one women dead from gender-based domestic violence in Australia in 2024.”

The room fell silent.

“Two women a week,” she repeated, the phrase hanging in the air like a death knell. “This isn’t just a statistic; it’s a national crisis, an epidemic. And it’s not going away. Twelve women have already been murdered in the first two months of this year.”

Kypraios didn’t mince words.

“Government funding alone won’t solve this. It requires action, understanding, and a tangible shift from every single one of us. This is about a deep-rooted culture of violence, a culture that bleeds into every corner of our lives,” she said.

“It’s your colleague, the woman trapped in isolation, the one gaslighted and abused until she feels powerless.

“These women are everywhere. They are professionals, mothers, women from diverse backgrounds. Domestic violence doesn’t discriminate. It’s a community issue, a business issue, a societal issue.”

Professor Christou emphasised the urgency.

“We have a responsibility to listen, to speak, to act. These discussions are confronting, but they are necessary,” he said.

Fitz-Gibbon laid bare the system’s failures.

“Sexual violence? Less than 10% of cases are reported. And of those, only 1% result in a court conviction. We have a national crisis, and it’s impacting every single corner of our community,” she said.

Fitz-Gibbon didn’t shy away from the pandemic’s role.

“COVID-19 didn’t cause the violence, but it amplified it. It increased the severity and frequency. And now, the cost of living crisis, housing shortages, they’re all fuelling the fire,” she said.

Hadjiantoniou spoke of the human cost.

“We’re seeing a surge of domestic violence cases. It’s a social pandemic. There are gaping holes in our culturally sensitive services. Women are walking through our doors, traumatised, homeless, and terrified,” she said.

“People ask, ‘Why doesn’t she just leave?’. They don’t understand the fear, the isolation, the feeling of being trapped. They face homelessness, even death, if they try to escape.”

As an organisation focused on business and industry, HACCI’s panel exposed the insidious nature of workplace abuse.

“Abusers sabotage careers, they isolate, they destroy,” Fitz-Gibbon stated. “Workplaces have a crucial role to play, but it needs more than HR policies. It needs a cultural revolution.”

Hadjiantoniou described the situation as a “societal cancer,” as speakers outlined how endemic violence can spread to elder abuse and violence against the LGBTQIA+ community, creating an interconnected spiral of intolerance.

The event also challenged the status quo with a significant male presence, many of whom were actively engaged, primarily seated in the back rows.

Michael Malakonas, Chief Operating Officer of Good Shepherd, received applause when he stated, “Less talking, far more doing. We are doing more, I ask you to do more.”

*All photos copyright The Greek Herald / Mary Sinanidis.