Two weeks ago Bill Shorten’s office informed Women’s Agenda that he had contact the Prime Minister about the closure of Hey Sis, the Aboriginal Women Sexual Assault Network program.
Aboriginal women are at least 3 times more likely to experience sexual assault than non-Aboriginal women, this is an incredibly serious issue and it requires a serious response.
Hey Sis is unique in that it is run for and by Aboriginal women, with assistance from non-Aboriginal people only provided as required and directed by the Aboriginal women in charge of the program. Until now they have scrapped through without any government assistance, but it’s not possible to run such a program safely without consistent long-term funding so, for now, it has closed.
Shorten wrote to the PM to ask if the federal government could provide the relatively small amount needed to keep Hey Sis going.
Prime Minister has responded to Bill Shorten’s letter (a copy of the letter is below), but as yet, has not made a firm commitment to fund the program.
Bill Shorten believes the response so far has been positive:
This is a very encouraging response from the Prime Minister.
I welcome and thank the Prime Minister for directing his Department to work with Hey Sis to ensure they can continue their vital community engagement.
This has proven to be an effective community-owned and Aboriginal-led initiative and it would be a shame if it was lost.
We should be investing in what works and ‘Hey Sis, We’ve Got Your Back’ is making a real difference in the prevention of sexual violence in our community.
Hopefully the next update we bring you on this matter will be that the government is going to provide full funding to restart the Hey Sis program and continue it for years to come.
