The number of domestic violence related assaults in Canterbury Bankstown has remained stable with
1,364 in 2021 and 1,348 in 2022.
The council will facilitate a local roundtable summit consisting of domestic violence advocates, women’s organisations, religious and spiritual leaders and police, “so we can hear their stories and issues, identify what more we can do to stop this now and advocate loudly on their behalf”.
Mayor El-Hayek said that since the beginning of the year, in NSW alone, there had been 15 deaths … and in the last five years, that number was an alarming 140 lives lost.
“The statistics give you a sense of what we as a community are facing,” he said.
“Police have revealed they answer something like 140,000 calls a year, or around 400 calls a day, and the reality is there are countless others, for a number of reasons, like too afraid, family shame, financial or cultural matters, who simply don’t report the violence.
“I refer to them as the silent sufferers, victims who go about their daily work, putting on a brave face.
“And what should be pointed out, is that many victims are opting to contact agencies like 1800
RESPECT and Lifeline, rather than the police.”
The Mayor said there were many more statistics he could roll out, but the full extent of the problem lay not only behind the statistics but behind closed doors.
“The impact it has on families, children, loved ones and friends … psychological impacts and ramifications which can last for many, many years … and even their entire lives,” he said.
While proud of the initiatives the council has already taken, Mayor Bilal El-Hayek said he wanted it to do more.
Police have also been carrying out a number of initiatives, including charging almost 600 people, including some of the State’s most dangerous domestic violence offenders, with serious offences during a four-day high-impact operation across NSW.
