Preventing Violence against Indigenous Women through Programs Which Target Men

The extent of interpersonal crime in Indigenous communities, and of violence in particular, is relatively well documented. National data on homicide rates shows that Indigenous people are 8.1 times more likely than non-Indigenous people to be victims of homicide.* 1 Violence as a cause of hospitalisation for young people between the ages of 15 and 24 is 2.7 times higher for Indigenous males than for non-Indigenous males, and 15 times higher for Indigenous women than for non-Indigenous women.2 An analysis of police reports in Western Australia has revealed that Aboriginal women are 10.7 times more likely than non-Aboriginal women to be victims of violent crime.3 In particular, the reports indicated extraordinarily high rates of victimisation for Aboriginal women in the 20-24 year age group. One in 10 Aboriginal women in this age group reported that a violent offence had been committed against her during a 12 month period.4 It is particularly alarming that much of this crime is attributable to family violence. Aboriginal women are 45 times more likely than non-Aboriginal women to be victims of domestic violence.5 In Western Australia, data on Aboriginal communities shows that 39.5 per cent of serious assaults are spousal assaults, compared to 7.5 per cent in non-Aboriginal communities.6 The incidence of violence directed at family members is also higher, accounting for 17.2 per cent of serious assaults in Aboriginal communities compared with 4.4 per cent in non-Aboriginal communities.7