By BRIDGET COOK
A NEW program has been launched in Casey to challenge the problem of family violence with supportive attitudes and positive role models.
The City of Casey, in partnership with the Shire of Cardinia, City of Greater Dandenong and Monash Health, launched the CHALLENGE Family Violence Project on Monday at the Casey Civic Centre.
The State Government has provided $600,000 to the project which will aim to take a pro-active stance in preventing family violence within Casey, Cardinia and Greater Dandenong – where the problem is prominent.
The councils will recruit male leaders from the three municipalities of diverse backgrounds to challenge perceptions, be suitable role models and promote healthy attitudes and behaviours.
The program will support the ability of local male leaders to work with other men in the community including those from schools, sporting clubs and culturally and linguistically diverse community groups.
The three municipalities are also working together to address Indigenous family violence as partners of the Southern Metropolitan Indigenous Family Violence Regional Action Plan.
City of Casey manager community safety Caroline Bell said family violence prevention was an important public health issue for our community.
“The City of Casey is committed to addressing this issue and is pleased to be the lead agency in a partnership across the three municipalities,” she said.
“Over the next three years, the councils will be asking for the support of community leaders from local sporting clubs, businesses, faith communities, schools, non-government organisations and culturally and linguistically diverse communities to work with us on tackling this issue.”
City of Casey Mayor Amanda Stapledon said she was thrilled to be joining forces with other agencies on this ground-breaking attitudinal-change project.
“The project seeks to work at a local level to create a new culture where violence against women and children is not tolerated,” she said.
“The municipalities partnering in this project have a strong commitment to preventing violence against women.
“We know this approach can work and we all have a role to play in this and we look forward to working with our project partners to reduce family violence in our community.”
South Eastern Metropolitan Region MP Inga Peulich said with more than 3200 reportable incidents of domestic violence in Casey over the past 12 months, this launch reinforced that domestic violence would not be tolerated in the local community.
“Importantly, the project will also contribute to the development of a model package for Islamic community leaders,” she said.
“We all know the devastating effect that domestic violence does have on the lives of the most vulnerable and I would like to wish the partners great success with the Challenge Family Violence Project because all of us in the community share the belief that safety is a basic human right for all.”
