Candidates in Victoria’s most marginal state electorate, Yan Yean, and their policies were put under the blowtorch at a women’s forum in Whittlesea last week.
Hosted by Women’s Health in the North, Women’s Health Goulburn North East and Whittlesea Community Futures, the forum tackled domestic violence, homelessness and the financial difficulty being experienced by women and children in Melbourne’s north.
Whittlesea has one of the highest rates of family violence in the northern metro region.
Policing and safety, public housing and funding cuts to women’s support services topped the question list and the candidates’ views on abortion rounded off the forum.
About 70 people heard from sitting Labor member Danielle Green, the shadow minister for health promotion, women and prevention of family violence; Liberal candidate and solicitor Sam Ozturk; and IT expert Daniel Sacchero, for the Australian Greens.
Ms Green said it was a disgrace that Victorian Attorney-General Robert Clark was prepared to speak at the weekend at the controversial World Congress of Families, an event opposed to the decriminalisation of abortion and homosexuality.
Mr Ozturk said he supported Premier Denis Napthine, who wants to leave abortion laws as they are. Abortion was decriminalised in 2008.
The Liberal Party’s state council has stated it wants the law reversed and MPs Geoff Shaw and Bernie Finn have campaigned against decriminalisation.
The Greens’ Mr Sacchero told the forum women were smart enough to make abortion decisions themselves.
Agencies represented at the forum are asking the state and federal governments for $1.1 million to boost services and programs that tackle family violence locally.
