This was published 5 years ago
'The #metoo movement is very controversial': Turnbull launches Despoja book
A short book is a good book, opined former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, speaking at the launch of a book.
“It’s a short book, and that’s a great virtue,” he said of On Violence, the petite tome by former MP Natasha Stott Despoja, the founding chair of Our Watch, former ambassador for Girls and Women, and an expert on violence against women.
Natasha Stott Despoja and Rosie Batty at the launch of On Violence.
“I’m writing a book at the moment and I can tell you, I think most people who write long books do so because they didn’t have time to write a short one,” said Mr Turnbull (while failing to promise to write a short book himself).
“It takes great discipline and keenness of intellect to distil those thoughts into a digestible format as we’ve got here.”
It made sense that Mr Turnbull would launch this book, which is focused on how to prevent the national emergency of violence against women and children.
His wife Lucy Turnbull is an Our Watch ambassador, and as prime minister the prevention of violence against women was one of his passions.
It formed the basis of his first decision in government: cabinet decision MT15/001 was to commit $100 million to tackling domestic violence.
As part of that push, the federal government launched a “Let’s Stop It At The Start” advertising campaign, which focused on the small acts of disrespect and casual aggression that foster a culture of violence against women and girls.
“I think [it] was one of the best government campaigns I have ever seen,” Mr Turnbull said.
“There is a lot of government advertising on at the moment and most of it is not particularly compelling.”
The friendly crowd laughed. It included his successor in Wentworth, Kerryn Phelps, and Liberal councillor Christine Forster, the sister of Mr Turnbull's political nemesis Tony Abbott. (Mr Turnbull and Ms Forster chatted amicably before formal proceedings began).
“Ultimately, we need to change,” Mr Turnbull said.
Natasha Stott Despoja and Rosie Batty at the launch of On Violence.
“The #metoo movement is very controversial, but it has got a remarkable dividend ... it’s making people aware of this sort of casual prejudice, casual disrespect, things that people took for granted that were so corrosive to that respect.
“It is critical that we have absolutely zero tolerance for disrespect of women, we must call it out and we must stamp it out.”
Later, the author took the stage, thanking Mr Turnbull, and quipped that with him and Ms Phelps in the crowd, it was “almost like a lightbulb joke - how many members for Wentworth can you…”
Ms Stott-Despoja ran through the dispiriting statistics: on average one woman dies violently every week, usually at the hands of someone she knows; domestic violence costs the economy $2.1 billion a year; it is the single biggest contributor to injury, death and disability for women aged 15-44; one in four women has experienced some form of violence by age 15; and every two minutes the police are called out to a domestic violence incident.
“I know you’re all sick of these statistics,” she said.
Her book, proceeds of which will go to Our Watch, focuses on prevention strategies in the form of education and culture change.
“To change the story that ends in violence against women and children we have to start with gender equality and respect for women,” she said.
Afterwards, there was tea and cake, and Mr Turnbull gave a short doorstop on matters political.
But before he took questions, he told journalists he hoped they had all bought a book.
Twitter: @JacquelineMaley