Wednesday, 8 March 2023

Motions

International Women’s Day

Debate resumed.

Kat THEOPHANOUS (Northcote) (14:39): It is with a great sense of pride and gratitude for the women who came before me in this place that I rise to speak in support of this motion, which marks 100 years since women won the right to stand for election to Victorian Parliament. I wish women right across Victoria a very happy International Women’s Day today. Of course just over 100 years ago I would not have been welcome in Parliament House. As a young woman, a mum, a woman from a migrant background, standing to speak and be heard on issues of the day would have been unthinkable back then. Women had no political voice and few protections from harms or rights in the workplace, and for our First Nations women, they had no rights at all – a dark thing to remember. So I would like to begin by acknowledging the work of First Nations women across our state, their strong leadership, their advocacy, their work on the front lines of critical services, all instrumental in the charge towards equality, against gendered violence and for the self-determination of Aboriginal-led services.

We cannot address gender equality and health inequalities without addressing the compounding and disproportionate impact of discrimination that First Nations women continue to experience. It is only by acknowledging our collective history and past harms and listening deeply to the voices, stories and wisdom of First Nations women that we can move forward and achieve real change. I know that I stand on the shoulders of the strong, powerful women who came before me and who continue to surround me.

As others who have spoken on this motion have noted, decades of action, including affirmative action, have meant that 54 per cent of Labor members of Parliament are women. This extends to the cabinet, where 64 per cent of ministers are women. Labor women in this Parliament have led some of the bravest and boldest reforms in our state, things like workplace manslaughter legislation, voluntary assisted dying, the circular economy, free TAFE, wage theft legislation, medicinal cannabis, family violence reform and treaty. I cannot emphasise enough the tangible difference it makes to have women in government, in the caucus room, in the cabinet, in our departments, in councils, on our committees. Truly representative democracy inherently leads to better decisions. Over the last few years, with women in the room, we have seen some incredible progress: a Royal Commission into Family Violence, a nation-leading gender equality act, the introduction of gender-responsive budgeting, free kinder reforms, the inquiry into economic equity for Victorian women, affirmative consent models and Respectful Relationships programs, and gender parity on paid government boards.

But we know there is more work to do. The pandemic exposed persistent and pervasive structural inequalities and barriers that continue to impact women today. Women across the world were shaken by the Roe v. Wade decision in the US, and housing, economic security, wellbeing and physical safety continue to be real and deeply felt concerns for women across the country. But as I speak with women in my community and as I listen to the debate today, I am not discouraged by the road ahead; I am heartened to know that there are so many of us striving, fighting and working together to go further, push harder and achieve more.

As the Parliamentary Secretary for Women’s Health, I am focused on bringing equity to our health system. Women and girls make up more than half our population, yet even after centuries of truly world-changing research and medical advancements, women’s health continues to be impacted by gender bias, medical ignorance and an exclusion from medical research. A historical focus on males and research, taboos around sexual and reproductive health as well as pervasive gender bias have all contributed to a medical system that is not gender-inclusive, and it is hurting women. Too often women’s symptoms are ignored, health issues are minimised or disregarded entirely. All it takes is a quick scan of the hashtag #MedicalMisogyny on social media to see thousands of stories from women of sexism and ignorance impacting their care, and I would wager that every single Victorian woman would either have experienced or know someone personally with their own story of this.

This lived experience is supported in the research. We know that there are sex and gender differences in susceptibility to certain diseases, the way we respond to treatments and medications, as well as symptoms for general conditions, yet the male experience is still overwhelmingly cast as the default in everything from discovery research to treatment in emergency and the very diseases that we look at. As Dr Sarah White, the CEO of Jean Hailes, has noted:

We intuitively understand that small boys are not the same as men, but for some reason, we treat women as if they’re small men.

Women are a staggering 75 per cent more likely to experience adverse reactions to prescription drugs than men, we are twice as likely to suffer from chronic pain conditions and we are more susceptible to Alzheimer’s, autoimmune diseases and challenging conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis. Yet women’s pain and symptoms of disease are more likely to be diagnosed as psycho-symptomatic or mental illness, harkening back to diagnoses of hysteria. Women are very familiar with having to strategise ahead of a visit to the doctor to try to make sure we are taken seriously, for fear that we will be told that we are overreacting or that we are making it up. We know that these disparities in treatment and health outcomes are only compounded for women facing intersectional barriers, like our First Nations women, the LGBTIQ community, women with a disability, women living in regional and rural Victoria and women from multicultural backgrounds.

Endometriosis is characteristic of how gender gaps in health care can play out for women. For those unfamiliar with the condition, it occurs when tissue similar to the lining of the uterus grows outside the womb, usually in the pelvis but it can migrate to other parts of the body. The condition can lead to inflammation and scarring and cause organs to stick together, causing intense pain, heavy bleeding, bloating, fatigue, anxiety and depression. Around one in nine women and girls will suffer from endometriosis by the time they are 40, but it still takes seven years on average for a woman to be diagnosed. The symptoms are brushed aside or misdiagnosed as mental health conditions or IBS, or women are told that they are normal. Endometriosis costs Australians about $9.7 billion annually in lost productivity and direct health costs. At the individual level persistent pain is preventing women from fully participating in work, sport and daily life.

I remember the immediate and visceral reaction to the menopause speech in Fleabag, ‘Women are born with pain built in.’ So many felt that to be true. Periods, sex, Pap smears, IUD insertion, birth, breastfeeding, miscarriage, menopause – pain has been seen as part of the package. But just as we should not and do not accept the inevitability of the gender pay gap, we should not and must not accept the gender pain gap. To be clear, this is not about sexist doctors or uninterested researchers; rather, it is about a structural legacy that has created a system which is sex and gender blind, and it will take courage, leadership and critical structural change to address this. The status quo simply is not good enough.

It is why the Andrews Labor government is taking action to make sure that women’s health gets the funding and focus that it deserves, and I was very happy to join the Minister for Health this morning at Northern Hospital, where we spoke with midwives and researchers who have used a small grant to co-design abortion care for women from multicultural backgrounds. At the last election Labor put forward our ambitious plan for improving women’s health. Central to this plan is improving access to quality care, culturally appropriate care and close-to-home care. We will deliver 20 new women’s health clinics and expand our existing sexual and reproductive health hub network to 20 sites. These new clinics will be one-stop shops for women needing treatment and advice on issues ranging from contraception to pelvic pain, polycystic ovary syndrome, endometriosis and menopause. To ensure culturally appropriate care and equity of access are built in from the start, we will also create a dedicated Aboriginal-led women’s health clinic with our First Nations partners as well as a mobile clinic to reach rural and remote Victorians. We will also double the number of surgeries for endometriosis over the next four years and invest in more support for women living with chronic conditions. We are supporting our health workforce with new scholarships. We will also lead a fundamental shift in medical research with a new women’s health research institute.

We now have an opportunity to build a legacy in women’s health, and we will continue to strive to make our health system more equitable for women and girls who live in Victoria. We will also do that by establishing an inquiry into women’s pain management – an opportunity for women across Victoria to share their lived experience of this and to be heard. This is a truly exciting and humbling time, and I look forward to supporting it.

Peter WALSH (Murray Plains) (14:49): I rise to make a contribution on the motion that this house notes that today is International Women’s Day, that this marks 100 years since women won the right to stand for election in the Victorian Parliament and that for many years First Nations women did not have the same political rights as other Victorians. In starting off, can I acknowledge two very proud First Nations women who have influenced me through my time in public life. First of all, Aunty Esther Kirby, who passed away last year and who was an absolute tower of strength in the Kerang community for not only her people but the whole community. Aunty Esther was someone I was really proud to work with over the journey on the things that she wanted to achieve for her community and that she did achieve in a lot of cases. The other one is Aunty Geraldine Atkinson, who is a co-chair of the First Peoples’ Assembly, who I have had the pleasure to work with for a long time, even before she took on that role, and someone that has done a lot particularly around education for her communities as well. So it is great to see women like that that have served their communities.

Can I start off by properly acknowledging the woman that has had the most influence on my life. That is my mum, who turned 97 two weeks ago and is still going very, very well, even though she has some challenges at that age and every now and again when she is down pleads for God to come and get her because she is so dark on my father for dying so early on her. She is a great woman.

I wanted to spend a bit of time talking about the women in agriculture and the women in the National Party. We hear a lot about the gender balance between the different political parties. Can I say as part of the Nationals team I am very proud to say that we have more women in our party in this Parliament than we do men, and I think that is a credit to everyone who has put some work in over probably the last eight years to achieve that particular goal. People talk about quotas – and there were some remarks made that were very unfair about quotas by one of the previous speakers from the other side – but that was done without quotas. That was gone about by having a commitment to preselecting positive, powerful advocates for their community who could make a difference for their community.

I think that is the case with all the team that we have, whether it be the member for Mildura, who has a very proud history in small business and as a local government mayor, or whether it be the member for Shepparton, who was in small business for 30 years before she came into this place and was also a mayor, or whether it be the member for Euroa, who was the editor of a major rural newspaper paper, the Stock & Land, before she came into this place and brings a lot of experience to this place, or whether it be Gaelle Broad, who is another new member and has had a number of roles but most recently a senior role with the Rural Bank, a division of Bendigo Bank, delivering a program for agriculture programs on behalf of the federal government right across the nation.

They have joined Melina Bath in the other place, who has made outstanding contributions since she joined the Parliament, a small business owner also but a senior maths science teacher at some stage in her career, and our deputy leader, who has a medical science background and most recently before she joined Parliament was the CEO of a hospital. I think we have got a great group of women there who have made and are going to make an absolutely outstanding contribution on behalf of the communities that have sent them here but also on behalf of the whole state. As you watch those people develop their careers, it is a credit to all of them that they have put their hand up. There are challenges. We heard in the contributions that there are challenges about how you manage life, children and coming to Parliament. I think everyone is experiencing that, but they are all committed to doing a great job on behalf of their communities.

When it comes to agriculture, for people in regional Victoria and people in the farming industry it has always been a partnership between the husband and wife in farming businesses. I think there are some great examples that I want to talk about in my contribution where people have stepped outside the farm and actually made a real contribution to the agriculture sector. The first of those is Heather Mitchell OBE AM, who was president of the Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) from 1986 to 1989. Heather and Joan Kirner are the two people that are credited with starting the Landcare movement in Australia. That had –

Danny O’Brien interjected.

Peter WALSH: Well, no. They are the two that started the Landcare movement. Success has many parents, failure is an orphan, and a lot of people take credit for the starting of Landcare, but if you go back and actually look at the true history the first Landcare group was at Winjallok, just south-west of St Arnaud, at Terry Simpson’s property. Heather Mitchell and Joan Kirner as the environment minister at the time drove that, and it went national. People have taken credit for it going national, people have taken credit for it going international, but if it had never started it would not have happened. Heather was well before her time in a lot of the things that she did with the VFF, but I think her major milestone is being involved in the starting of the Landcare movement there.

Merna Curnow, a lady from Laanecoorie, who was involved in Australian Women in Agriculture, Partners in Grain and locally in Landcare, worked with me when I was the VFF president in running a group as to how we could get more women involved in agripolitics in this state. I thank Merna for all the work she has done over the years for her particular community.

I digress with a very small story. I at times make flippant comments. We were having a meeting about how we planned a function, a lunch, and I made the flippant comment, ‘What’s wrong with Vegemite sandwiches?’ It came back to haunt me, because when I was guest speaker at Marcus Oldham College’s annual leadership dinner, everyone else got rack of lamb and I got Vegemite sandwiches because three of the women doing that course had actually been at our working group about getting more women involved in agriculture. The principal of Marcus Oldham was absolutely horrified when the Vegemite sandwiches came out, but the joke was on me. But Merna has done a lot over the years, and I thank her for that.

Phyllis Vallance from Nandaly, who passed away a number of years ago, was an absolutely outstanding person. I can remember my colleague Barry Bishop saying that when he wanted an opinion about what was going on he would ring Jack Vallance and get one opinion, and he would ring Phyllis and get an equally strong opinion the other way, because she was such a power of strength there.

Going across to some of the other women in the VFF: Anne Adams and Shirley Harlock, who the member for South-West Coast spoke about earlier; Sarah Crooke from north-eastern Victoria; the member for South-West Coast in her own right, when she was involved with the dairy industry; and Gay Tripodi from Swan Hill, who was president of the horticulture group of the VFF and made her contribution as it went through. So a lot of women not only are partners in their farming businesses but have made the effort to step outside their farming businesses and make a real contribution to agriculture and make it what it is here in Victoria and Australia.

The last group I would like to acknowledge is some of the very strong community women leaders from the town of Rochester. As everyone in this house would know, Rochester got severely flooded back in October 2022. This followed on from the severe flooding they had back in January of 2011. There is a group there that have stepped up to the mark and shown real, true leadership through what has gone on in Rochester, and after the immediate response they are still working really, really hard on the recovery of Rochester as a community. As I have said to other people, the soul of Rochester has been bruised by this; a lot of people around Rochester are still hurting very much. Kate Ward is an outstanding leader in that community, and also Sharon Williams, Meagan Keating, Tracie Kyne, and Amanda Logie, who runs the neighbourhood house there – that group is the core group who came together immediately after the flood and organised the food trucks to come in. They cleaned out the church hall, which was one of the buildings that did not flood too badly, and actually set up the recovery centre there before any of the departmental staff went into town. They made sure that there was someone there to help care for those that were still around but did not have a house, did not have the ability to cook food and did not have a whole range of things.

They did a great job in the immediate recovery, but they are still working flat-out there to make sure that the community comes back together again and actually starts to heal. Their real concern – and this is where the government has been helpful – is that a lot of people will not come back to Rochester, that it will not be the town that it was. Some of the people that I have spoken to said, ‘We went through this in 2011 and we fixed our houses. We are now 10 years older, and we have to fix our houses again. Is it actually worth doing this?’ So if you think about all the women that have done great things, it is those in communities like Rochester that do not get a lot of praise but make the effort to make their community better because they actually love living in those particular communities.

So on this International Women’s Day can I acknowledge all those people I have mentioned but also all the other women right across Victoria, right across Australia and right around the world who make such a positive contribution to our communities and our lives. They do a fantastic job.

Daniela DE MARTINO (Monbulk) (14:59): I rise to address this motion on International Women’s Day. As noted by many others here, it is 100 years since non-Aboriginal women were first allowed the right to stand for Parliament in this state. It is 115 years since non-Indigenous women won the right to vote in 1908 in Victoria and 112 since their first votes were cast at a state election. Shamefully, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and men had to wait until 1962 to gain the same right at state and federal levels. They have only held the right to vote and stand for election for 61 years across our country. Victoria may have been the last state in Australia to give non-Indigenous women the right to vote, but we are leading the charge now when it comes to supporting all women irrespective of age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, religious belief or economic status.

Victoria under the Andrews Labor government is no longer the laggard but the leader of our nation when it comes to gender equality, and I am immensely proud to be part of this progressive government, which is closing the gender gap through policies that create real and tangible change. They say that you need to see it to be it. Victoria is the state where young women and girls can now easily envisage themselves in this place or in other positions of leadership. As a result of decades of affirmative action quotas, we have now arrived at a point where 54 per cent of Labor Party members of Parliament are women. The cabinet of the Andrews Labor government is made up of 64 per cent women – that is nearly two-thirds, and a staggering number. These numbers did not happen overnight and they did not happen without a concerted effort to give women a seat at the table.

Beyond this place we have supported women in leadership through funding numerous leadership programs such as the Joan Kirner Emerging Leaders Program, Women of Colour Executive Leadership Program, ECHO First Nations Women’s Leadership Program, Women’s Board Leadership Program and the Victorian Honour Roll of Women, with a focus on First Nations and multicultural women. The gender equality strategy Safe and Strong has demonstrated our commitment to improving gender equality in Victoria. We are steadfast in our desire to improve outcomes for women, no matter their age or stage of life. We know that equality will only come with embedding change into our systems and institutions. This is why we established the gender responsive budgeting unit, which considers the gendered impact of government decisions across the entire budget process. We are currently the only jurisdiction to have such a unit. The 2022–23 state budget was the first time a gender lens was used on a budget. Again, we are leaders, no longer laggards, in Victoria.

In another Australian first we will begin work to restrict the use of non-disclosure agreements, NDAs, for workplace sexual harassment cases in Victoria. These NDAs are often tools used to keep victim-survivors silenced, and who do they benefit? Unsurprisingly, some employers who seek to keep their reputations clean, avoid full liability and hide their serial offending with NDAs. All too often, though, these agreements merely serve the interests of keeping those who should be held to account out of the public eye of scrutiny.

We have committed to investing $23 million to provide free period products in public places, installing 1500 free pad and tampon machines at up to 700 public sites, including public hospitals, courts, TAFEs, public libraries, train stations and major cultural institutions like the State Library Victoria and the Melbourne Museum.

The initiatives we have made in the education system to ensure we address gender inequity are admirable. Since 2016 the Victorian government has invested $82.1 million in the Respectful Relationships initiative. Respectful Relationships supports Victorian schools and early childhood settings to model respect and promote positive attitudes and behaviours. From our youngest learners to our school leavers, this program works to ensure that children grow up respecting one another and seeing past differences. Over 1950 Victorian government, Catholic and independent schools are signed on to the Respectful Relationships whole-school approach, a significant number indeed and one we should all be proud of. If we want to see an end to violence, in particular gendered violence, it starts with respectful relationships. These are but a few of the government’s proud list of achievements when it comes women and closing the gender gap. It is a gap which has been all too wide in the past and is in desperate need of closing. There has been much done but there is still much more to do.

When it comes to the much to be done and more to do, I now turn to discussing some of the wonderful women of Monbulk and acknowledge their contributions to our community. There is not enough time to list them all here today, but there are a few I would like to highlight. Firstly, there is Belinda Young, who was the guest speaker today, founder of Mums of the Hills, about whom I spoke in this place only a few weeks ago. She gave an incredible address. It was impassioned, it was gracious, it was strong, it was true and it made many talk in that room today in Queen’s Hall. Belinda is a woman connecting other women together, always with their wellbeing at the fore. She is there to raise other women up, never to put them down.

Janet Claringbold, one of my guests here today, is the CEO of Mountain District Learning Centre in Ferntree Gully. Janet is a tenacious and tireless woman in her pursuit of offering educational pathways for youth who have disconnected from mainstream schooling and for adults who are in need of increasing their literacy and numeracy skills. There are few in the area who do not know Janet and the remarkable work she does for her community, always with the wellbeing of others at the core of her work. Her advocacy for neighbourhood houses is longstanding. She is another woman seeking to improve the lives of others. Janet, thank you for your service.

Lynne Trensky is another woman, and the second guest I brought today, contributing her time and efforts to her community. Over the past 10 years, through her work on the Emerald Village committee and her role in the Eastern Dandenong Ranges Association, Lynne has given of herself in these non-profit organisations with a view to making her community a stronger, better place. She is a strong advocate for the eastern part of the Dandenong Ranges and the small businesses within the area, knowing the vital role they play within the community. Thank you, Lynne.

Tania Bevan, the CEO of Dandenong Ranges Emergency Relief Service, located in Belgrave, is another woman determined to work hard for those most in need, the vulnerable people in our community struggling to make ends meet. For 13 years Tania has worked tirelessly to support and care for those living without a home, enough food to feed themselves or their families or the means to pay the bills or buy much-needed medicine. Those with mental health needs and victim-survivors of family violence find support and care under Tania’s watch at Dandenong Ranges Emergency Relief Service.

These are just a few of the women who work so hard to support the community of Monbulk. It is impossible to mention the countless women of the hills who work tirelessly to leave this place better than they found it, be it through voluntary roles or paid positions, but there are countless who do so across many fields, including education, health, food relief and community sport, to name a few.

Finally, I would like to pay my respects to a particular woman who has inspired my work to improve the lives of others: Thérèse Bryant, the first ever women’s officer for a trade union in Australia, from the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association (SDA). Thérèse worked at the union for over 35 years and would have to be the most tenacious woman I know. She worked tirelessly to advance the rights of women at work through pursuing improvements in both industrial and anti-discrimination legislation. It is a long list; please bear with me.

Thérèse worked on the 1979 industrial court case for unpaid maternity leave and subsequently the achievement of unpaid paternity and adoption leave. She pursued the right for women to be able to wear slacks to work, which led to a successful industrial court case in 1979. Imagine that – not being able to wear slacks to work. She increased the participation of women at all levels of the union, including the introduction of women’s officers and women’s committees. She lobbied for and achieved increases in family assistance payments from the federal government. She helped with the introduction of legislation to make discrimination and sexual harassment illegal in this country. She worked on developing policies, educational materials and training in companies and unions regarding equal employment opportunities and sexual harassment. She worked on the introduction of compulsory superannuation, or company pension payments as they were then known; the introduction of paid family and carers leave and collective agreements in industrial legislation; the introduction of laws to make pregnancy discrimination at work illegal, as well as an increased focus on accommodating the needs of pregnant workers, including providing them with safe work; achieving the requirement for companies to consider family responsibilities when establishing or changing employee rosters in SDA enterprise agreements; the achievement of paid maternity leave for most working mothers paid by the government – Thérèse started her campaign two years after I was born; the introduction of legislation requiring employers to report on gender equality in the workplace; and raising awareness regarding domestic violence and its impact on members at work.

As part of her role as the national women’s officer of the SDA, Thérèse oversaw the SDA national women’s committee, which pursues issues important to women members and ensures that this results in continued change and improvements in the work that is undertaken on behalf of those members and the lives of working women more broadly. She was also involved in advancing the rights of women at work in the broader union movement, particularly in her role as chair of the ACTU women’s committee, and she actively represented the union on various government working groups and committees and made numerous submissions to government inquiries and legislative committees. She continued her work beyond Australia’s borders and represented the union at an international level as a member of both the world and Asia-Pacific region women’s committees of Union Network International and its predecessor, known as FIET, for 16 years, including holding the position of vice president. Thérèse, thank you.

Kim O’KEEFFE (Shepparton) (15:09): I rise to address this motion on International Women’s Day. International Women’s Day is a day when I reflect on the amazing and inspiring women who have led the way for a better future for other women.

I also thank all the wonderful women who have surrounded me with encouragement and support: my two beautiful daughters Emma and Olivia, who inspire me every day to create a better life for the women of our future and whom I continue to learn from; and my two sisters Kerry and Keeli, who cheer me on and are there for me through life. And today I think of my mum, who passed away three years ago and who would have loved to have seen me in this place. My girlfriends, my community, my mentors and my National Party sisters – all of you have shaped me in so many ways.

My close friend Aunty Faye Lynam is a local Yorta Yorta woman from the stolen generation. Her life story and truth-telling is deep and meaningful. Her unique story in history and want for a better future, not only for Aboriginal women but for all women and all of her broader community, is truly inspiring, but it is her kindness and her kind heart that I am so grateful for. Aunty Pam Pedersen is another Indigenous woman who inspires and influences me, as is Aunty Geraldine Atkinson. They are incredible women and leaders within our community.

Shara Lee is a local woman who also has an inspiring story. Shara was a homeless woman with two young children but has turned her life around. She shared her unique story of striving for a better life for herself and her children. Shara was supported by her community, but it was Shara that pushed through the challenges of life and worked incredibly hard to create opportunity and success. Shara has been progressing her career, working full time, and is a recent graduate from the Fairley Leadership program. It is women like Shara sharing her story that give other women hope and are a testament on breaking through the challenges and the barriers in life.

Another inspiring local woman is Ash Napolitano. Ash and her husband Mat lost their only child, son Hunter, who drowned in a dam. In the depths of their despair they were driven to make a difference for others and established a program that would provide children in need with critical swimming lessons and water safety education for a minimum of 12 months. In partnership with Kidsafe Victoria the program was launched in May 2021 with an aim to expand to other regional areas. I have spoken to some of the mothers whose children are participating in the program, and they said they would not have been able to put their children through swimming programs without that support. Ash is a truly inspiring woman and an amazing woman who is making such an incredible difference to so many people’s lives.

I also acknowledge today my friend and mentor, former MP Jeanette Powell, who was the first elected woman in the National Party of Victoria and the only female member at the time. It is great to see how things have changed, with six female members out of the 11 current members. Let us hope that change continues with more women being elected to all levels of government and that can be led by example. I also acknowledge Pat Smith, the first woman CEO at the Greater Shepparton City Council, which was very historic for the time and a position previously only held by men – many, many years ago. Pat is a woman who continues to inspire me and others.

As a woman in leadership, I know the opportunity and power that I have to inspire and encourage other women. It does not have to be in politics, but living my best and fulfilling life and achieving my aspirations will hopefully encourage other women to strive and achieve their aspirations and to see that there are no limitations in life, just like Shara’s story. Too often women underestimate or do not see their capabilities. I ran my own business for almost 30 years, with my clientele being 99 per cent women. I was fortunate to have an opportunity to help other women have success in life, whether it was starting a new career, owning their own businesses or their own personal development. Many of these women not only created their own success but they went on to inspire other women. That is something we should all aspire to do. However, I also saw firsthand the impact of domestic violence and the need to ensure women have the services provided and a support network around them.

It does not matter the age we are or our generational differences, we all have something to contribute. I have two very special friends. Daisy is 16 and we share many wonderful times together. Through Daisy, I see the youth of today – their challenges, their hopes and their opportunities. My 96-year-old friend Yvonne, who I only met due to circumstances during the pandemic, has so much to share with me: her wisdom, knowledge and life experiences. She is one of the most wonderful women I have ever met.

I also wish to acknowledge some of the men in my life: my husband Brendan, who has been such a powerful role model to my daughters and such a wonderful support to me – having a house full of women was not easy, and I must say, he handled the teenage years much better than me; my four brothers, who are wonderful men, of whom I am very proud; my male friends – my very closest friends Azem, Cammy and Sev, who are like family; and my five male National Party colleagues, who have shown me nothing but respect, support and encouragement. As the member for Mildura pointed out, they are now outnumbered.

I encourage all men to think about the impact they have on women in their lives and more broadly, whether it be professional or in their personal life. Any day of the year makes a perfect opportunity to support and celebrate women in our life; however, this global day recognises many women’s incredible achievements. It raises awareness and encourages advocacy for gender equality. Happy International Women’s Day.

Ella GEORGE (Lara) (15:15): It is my honour to speak today on the International Women’s Day motion. It is also an honour to do so as the first female to represent the district of Lara in the Legislative Assembly, especially given this year, as the motion notes, it has been 100 years since women won the right to stand for election to this Victorian Parliament. I am proud to be a part of a team where 54 per cent of Labor members of Parliament are women. The motion also notes that for many years First Nations women did not have the same political rights as other Victorians, and I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge two powerful Victorian leaders, member for Northern Metropolitan Sheena Watt and Senator Jana Stewart, who are paving the way for more First Nations women to enter politics. They set an inspiring example.

This government is not about platitudes or purple-frosted cupcakes at an annual morning tea. It is about real action, real change and public policy that supports women and girls. This government delivered the Royal Commission into Family Violence and has funded all 227 recommendations. This government enshrined gender equity in law with the Gender Equality Act 2020 to address issues like the gender pay gap and sexual harassment in the public sector. We are the only jurisdiction in Australia to have such powerful legislation. But there is more to do, and this government will get on with doing it, like investing $23 million to provide free period products in public places and the $9 million Best Start, Best Life initiative, overhauling early childhood education and making kinder free.

There have been some strong women within the labour movement that have helped pave the way for future generations of Labor women. Fanny Brownbill was the first female Labor member of Parliament, the member for Geelong for 10 years from 1938 to 1948. Fanny ran for Parliament in a by-election following the death of her husband, William, who had been the member for Geelong. During the by-election campaign the then federal Treasurer expressed doubt as to whether there was a place for women in politics. He went on to say:

If there is a place for women in politics … it is probably in the Legislative Council or in the Senate, where things are quieter and the old gentlemen occasionally drowse into their beards. My advice is, however good a woman may be, to stick to a man for what has always been recognised in the past to be a man’s job.

Fanny’s response was sharp. She said:

I am perfectly confident that my sex can do most things just as well as men.

Fanny, I think that the 54 per cent of Labor MPs in the 60th Parliament of Victoria would agree with you, and so did the voters of Geelong. Fanny won her seat by more than 3000 votes against her male rival. Fanny was passionate about the welfare of women, children and the aged. In her first speech to this place Fanny said:

Honorable members will agree that a mother’s life is, to a very great extent, one of sacrifice, particularly while her children are young.

She used her first speech to advocate for mothers, opposing a ban by the Victorian railways commissioners on prams on Victorian trains. Mothers continue to sacrifice for their families, and we will continue to stand by them, to listen to them and to shape our state to support them. Fanny helped establish Grace McKellar House in North Geelong. Then a nursing home, the Grace McKellar centre is expanding beyond aged care to support children’s rehabilitation, new parents and their babies and people needing acute mental care. I think Fanny would be proud to see the modern McKellar Centre, a hub of community health care and support services for women and families.

Today Fanny’s portrait hangs on the walls of Geelong Trades Hall, a powerful reminder of this trailblazing woman. I wonder what Fanny’s experience sitting in this chamber was like. For five years from 1943 to 1948 she was the sole female member of Parliament, the only woman in this place. I wonder what that felt like. I think she must have been an incredibly brave woman. She said in this place:

Let us not forget that the children of to-day will be the citizens of to-morrow, and, shall I say, the power house of the future.

Fanny, I hope that the many, many, many Labor women here with me today are not just citizens of a better Victoria that you shaped but a powerhouse for our shared fight for equality.

In 1990 Joan Kirner became the first female Victorian Premier – a Labor Premier, another brave woman. An MP, a minister, a Deputy Premier and then Premier, Joan Kirner cut a path for all Labor women who followed behind her.

My personal journey to this place has also been guided by strong and dedicated Labor women. Two friends and mentors, Janice Munt and former Speaker Jenny Lindell, have both mentored many Labor women over many years, and they have been an inspiration to me. It was women like Fanny, Joan, Janice and Jenny whose bravery and spirit have paved the way for 54 per cent of Labor MPs in this Parliament.

Across the community of Geelong there are some truly inspirational women, women changing the conversation and empowering their friends and colleagues to keep pushing for equality. Corrina Eccles is one who comes to mind. Corrina is a proud Wadawurrung woman who works tirelessly in her community to share her culture and the stories of her ancestors. She works hard with the Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation to oversee the cultural heritage of its lands and waters. She is a leader in teaching Wadawurrung language. Corrina is a passionate, strong and fierce advocate for her community and her culture. Just this morning at the Committee for Geelong’s International Women’s Day breakfast, the committee announced Corrina as the recipient of the Frank Costa Leadership Award. It is very well deserved, and I congratulate Corrina.

Kaylene Reeves, the co-director of Norlane Community Initiatives, is also one of the many hardworking women in my electorate. Norlane Community Initiatives focuses on bringing the community of the north together to problem-solve and create solutions to key problems faced. This has included delivering healthy meals to families that needed the help and creating common and safe spaces for the community to meet and grow together.

Lyn Morgan is another. Lyn joined the Northern Futures team in 2017 and is an incredible asset to the northern suburbs of Geelong. She guides the Northern Futures team in supporting countless local residents into career pathways and employment. Her work in the community has real, tangible outcomes for the people of the north. There are countless people who have been impacted in a positive way by the work of Lyn, and we are so lucky to have her.

All five neighbourhood houses in the Lara electorate are led by women: Heather O’Shannessy at the Anakie Community House, Vivian Fry at the Lara Community Centre, Esther Konings-Oakes at the Norlane Community Centre, Liz Bonner at the Cloverdale Community Centre, Jodie Flood at Rosewall community centre and Sally-Ann Muller at Vines Road Community Centre. These women go above and beyond for their communities, always putting the best interests of the community at the forefront of everything that they do. I and many, many others in the community appreciate their tireless efforts.

A final thankyou to all the female volunteers – whether it be at sporting clubs, neighbourhood houses, in our health services, at our local op shops or food relief centres – and in particular to those who support women’s organisations and initiatives. Our state relies on the hard work of our volunteers, and I thank you for your work in making a positive impact in the lives of our communities and for women and children. Thank you for the opportunity to speak on this today, and I commend the motion to the house.

David SOUTHWICK (Caulfield) (15:23): It is a pleasure to rise and speak on this motion on International Women’s Day. This International Women’s Day let us be allies and advocates for gender equity. There is a role we all need to play to ensure an equitable society. Let us think of ways we can individually and collectively break down systemic barriers. We need to speak out and stand up against gender-based violence, discrimination and inequity. It is time for everyone to lead by example. It is a time to step up and be part of the solution. If you see, hear or bear witness to inequality, say something. Gender equity is not a women’s issue, it is a societal issue, of which everyone plays a key role and needs to be part of the solution. By educating themselves on these issues and challenges faced by women and other marginalised groups, men can also help break down the systemic barriers that contribute to gender inequality. We need to work together to create a more inclusive and equitable society. Gender equality affects everybody, including our children and our grandchildren, and it is time for everybody to challenge historical and societal inequality towards a better future for everyone.

This was a pledge that the National Council of Jewish Women put together, predominantly for men to be part of International Women’s Day. I was pleased to take part in that pledge, and I want to commend Lisa Ezekiel and the National Council of Jewish Women of Australia, Victoria division, for being part of that campaign. I also want to put on record my thanks to Rabbi Rabin, who is the rabbi for Caulfield Shule; Jeremy Leibler; the president of the Zionist Federation of Australia; and Josh Burns, my federal colleague, who all took part in that pledge –and I am sure there were others as well. At the end of the day, if we are really going to move the dial, we have got to all be part of this solution, and we have got to call out inequality where we see it.

We have made huge advances when it comes to equality, and we can be very proud of the contributions that so many women have made. We have heard that today, with International Women’s Day being celebrated at Parliament House. But we need to do more. We need to do more in boardrooms, in community organisations and in parliaments in every way we can to ensure that those opportunities for women are there. To do that we have got to be very conscious of that fact, and I know that when I first got involved in the pledge, working with many of the organisations in our community that support women, things that were not obvious to me were being called out pretty quickly in terms of what we need to be looking for. Even when you are putting together a speakers group and deciding who you put up for a speakers group, go out and look for positive role models. When you are having various lunch meetings and boardroom meetings and everything else, bring people from outside of your circle in and ensure there is that balance of men and women at the table. Even when you are setting many of these meetings make sure that they are friendly to both genders to ensure that we can get women to attend those meetings.

So we have got to look at our behaviour. We have got to look at changing our behaviour and making sure that women can participate. As I say, things are better – we run family-friendly hours in here – but we need to do more. We need to look at how the workplace operates and can operate in a more family-friendly manner as well. I support that, and I know that we have got a lot more work to do when it comes to that.

There are two women that I brought to the International Women’s Day celebration today that I want to just make mention of: firstly, Philippa Caris, who is manager of the Glen Eira Adult Learning Centre. Philippa has been involved with the centre for 12 years and has over 30 years of experience in working with neighbourhood houses and the community sector both here and overseas. Philippa deals with new immigrants to Australia that come here and are dealing with language barriers and are looking at trying to build skills to get their first job. I have had the privilege of being able to see those students coming through the community house, and what a change and what an opportunity Philippa has been able to give many of those new immigrants to Australia. It is effectively an entree into future opportunities here, and I commend Philippa for what she has been able to do. It was great having Philippa come into Parliament. It was the first time that she has actually been to this Parliament, and it was wonderful for her to be able to share that experience with us today.

Lee-at Jacobson is president of the Jewish Professional Women’s Network. The Jewish Professional Women’s Network is changing conversations around what Jewish women do and what they are. It is a forum that is career focused so women can share ideas and information, build professional networks, develop their professional capacity and skills, discus topics and relevant issues and have fun. It has over 1000 active members across Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn, and they hold events during the year to shine a light on incredible women in the Jewish community and the professional contributions they make. I think what they do is fantastic, because they are really ensuring that there is a support network and that women are able to develop their skills.

Lee-at mentioned to me that it was also her first time at Parliament today. She is now working for a large ASX-listed company and prior to that she was working in the advertising game. She was saying that certainly it is more family friendly in the organisation she works for currently – far more friendly – but it was a lot harder when you were working in the cut and thrust of the advertising world. It certainly was not family friendly when it came to the working hours there, and that was probably one of the reasons why she moved into the career that she now has. Great experience too – very, very different experiences for both Lee-at and Philippa today. And I know there are a number of wonderful women that have contributed so much that were in the Parliament of Victoria.

We have got to do more as a society. We have got to do more no matter what, no matter who you are, and I think we have got to do more as men, as I said at the beginning of this contribution today. We are very, very fortunate – and I am very fortunate – to have role models. Everyone – particularly us blokes – loves to talk about our mums, our wives and our children, and I especially want to mention my daughter Paige. We sat down and spoke about this at length. We tend to speak quite often about the challenges of being a young woman and having to face all kinds of issues – whether it be university, whether it be a new career or whether it be just social media – and it is really interesting to hear the perspective from a young woman’s eyes as well. Paige was very happy to share on social media with me her thoughts about what it means to be a woman on International Women’s Day. My wife Hayley – I do not know how she does it, managing her work–life balance and being involved in chairing a number of organisations – started in the women’s division of United Israel Appeal and for the last five years-plus has been the president of UIA. I think she was the first woman to take up that role in Victoria. She certainly talks to me a lot about the challenges that are faced in community organisations but also in running a business as well.

But at the end of the day it is about just getting up. It is doing, having a go, being focused and being committed. As our member for Eildon, the Shadow Minister for Women, said today, it is about women celebrating women, which is really, really important, and women acknowledging themselves that they are doing such a wonderful job, because women quite often just get up and do. They do not complain, they just do it, and I think we need to provide that opportunity for women to be able to celebrate the wonderful achievements that they have all made. To everybody out there, to all of our fantastic and very special women, happy International Women’s Day.

Lauren KATHAGE (Yan Yean) (15:33): It is my honour to speak today on International Women’s Day. Yesterday was 100 days since I was elected, and this year marks 100 years since women won the right to stand for election to a Victorian Parliament. There is a proud history of women’s struggle to get into this place. Somebody bought my daughter a picture book which tells the story of Emmeline Pankhurst, a UK suffragette, and I thought, ‘Oh.’ My daughter is five and I do not think she is ready to learn about this yet. I do not want her to know that there is inequality in the world and that women are sometimes treated as less than equal. How can I expose that to my five-year-old? So when I read it to her I change the words. I make it up as I go along to match the pictures, and I basically take the guts out of the story, which is about women fighting for the right to vote. When is a young girl old enough to learn that the world does not always treat women as it should? And when will young girls never have to learn that because women are treated equally?

I reflected last night that perhaps in not reading the full true story to my daughter I was doing her a disservice, and I wondered if it was akin to those opposite opposing a motion to even discuss International Women’s Day in this place. Many of my daughter’s picture books follow the same pattern: a hero overcoming adversity. In not reading her the story, I have come to realise, I am not showing her the full role of women as heroes, heroes like Heather and Gnanes, who joined me here today as my guests for International Women’s Day. Heather was an apprentice in this very place and painted much of the gold leaf that you see in various places around here, especially in the other place. If you happened to bring a ladder to work and climbed up it, you would see where the apprentices and the painter-decorators of the 1970s wrote their names on the ledges above.

Gnanes was also here. Gnanes is a volunteer at the Mernda Community House, teaching women how to sew. I was so pleased this morning that in her excitement to come to Parliament House, this place of power, this morning she sewed me a small keepsake, with an inside lining fabric with pictures of women. I thought that was very touching and I was very happy to have them here with me today.

A personal hero who, unbeknownst to her, helped shape my life path is Jackie Huggins. A Bidjara and Birri Gubba Juru academic, author and activist, she would enter the lecture hall when I was at university, speak to us students and change our lives, our understanding of how the world works and how it should work. That was a long time ago. More recently she has served as the co-chair of the eminent panel advising the Queensland government on the process of truth-telling and treaties. It is not enough for some women to have a voice. All women must have a voice. And it is not enough that people who are the subject of policies and programs do not have a guiding say in them. That is why I support an Aboriginal Voice to Parliament.

Young women must have a voice too. I met Sophie at Whittlesea Secondary College, which I was visiting to discuss the $11.7 million upgrade we are delivering to that fine school. Her principal had brought Sophie along to meet me because Sophie has a keen interest in politics. Sophie asked me, ‘What advice would you give to an aspiring politician?’ My answer was immediate: join the Labor Party. For if you are a female and if you want a seat in this place at the table of decision-making, any high school maths student could tell you that your odds are much better on this side of the chamber.

But in this chamber we are not focused on ourselves, we are focused on the women in Victoria. That is why the 2022–23 state budget invested approximately $940 million in initiatives primarily aimed at improving outcomes for women. It is why the Victorian government established and has responded to the inquiry into economic equity for Victorian women and has committed $3 million to industry strategies in manufacturing and energy to help women enter and stay in male-dominated sectors.

There are other spheres of influence for women besides politics. On Monday at the Bridge Inn Road upgrade I met Azize, a female apprentice who was working alongside her male and female colleagues to build the infrastructure that will make such a tangible improvement to the lives of so many in my electorate. We have seen that with free TAFE and with the support for apprentices in Victoria it has become easier for women to forge a career in male dominated sectors. As I said earlier, this year is 100 years since women won the right to stand for election in the Victorian Parliament. Why is it important that there are female representatives in Parliament? It is not just about somewhat abstract notions of fairness or the claims that women are more empathetic. It is about real change. A 2022 study in the European Journal of Public Health found that:

… greater female political representation is associated with lower geographical inequalities in infant mortality, smaller inequalities in … health … and fewer disability-adjusted life-years lost for women and men.

Better outcomes do not happen by accident. Female-strong governments introduce things like increased maternal and child health hours for new parents. We are investing $69 million to help parents, when their babies are born, to have more access to free maternal and child health services, new early parenting services and additional support for multicultural and Aboriginal communities. It is to make those early weeks and months easier.

Female-strong governments also introduce policies like our $71 million package to create 20 new women’s health clinics at public hospitals, a new statewide service and more sexual and reproductive health hubs across Victoria, as well as working with Aboriginal health organisations to deliver dedicated Aboriginal-led women’s health clinics. These will provide comprehensive care for Victorians experiencing pain, and women’s pain often goes undiagnosed; I think here of my niece, who each month suffers from debilitating pain, interrupting her schooling and her participation in sport. I am looking forward to hearing more from the inquiry into women’s pain management that is being established.

It is true that some people do not believe that women belong in Parliament. In fact I am often asked when I am out and about with community groups or here in this house, ‘Who is looking after your daughters?’ Well, the Labor government is looking after my daughters. As we speak my three-year-old daughter is in free three-year-old kinder, taking part in play-based learning, and my big girl is at a great local state school, with the latest school newsletter informing me that it is running the Respectful Relationships program. The Respectful Relationships program acquits a key recommendation of the Labor government’s Royal Commission into Family Violence, helping schools promote respect, positive attitudes and behaviours in all aspects in their classrooms, their culture, their playground, the staffroom and more broadly in the school community. I am so glad that my daughter will benefit from that.

Purple and green are the colours of International Women’s Day, as they were for the British suffragettes: purple representing justice and green representing hope. I wear green today for my daughters, to represent the hope I hold that they will be the heroes of their own stories. Thank you for the opportunity to speak on International Women’s Day, and I thank all of my incredibly strong female colleagues for all the support, guidance and fantastic role modelling they have provided for myself and other new members of Parliament.

Jess WILSON (Kew) (15:43): It is a pleasure to rise today to speak on this motion and celebrate International Women’s Day like all those who have spoken before me. Many in this place today have remarked on how important it is to celebrate women every day, and I certainly could not agree more with that sentiment. But more importantly I think it is incumbent upon all of us to make sure that we are empowering women every day and ensuring that equality of opportunity is at the heart of everything that we do in this place.

Over the past week I have had the privilege to speak at a number of International Women’s Day events, one last Friday in this place in Queen’s Hall for the Alliance of Girls’ Schools and one this morning at Kew High School. This has been an incredible opportunity to meet with young female aspiring leaders whether that is in politics or the business community or the community sector and hear from them and hear their questions and concerns as they leave school over the coming years.

As I said, on Friday I was delighted to host, alongside the Shadow Minister for Health, Georgie Crozier in the other place, the Alliance of Girls’ Schools, and we had over 25 schools from across Victoria attend the breakfast, which was a fantastic way to bring young women into this place and talk about the opportunities that there are for them to get involved in politics and to champion issues whatever they might be. We did remark on the fact that it is 100 years since we saw women first allowed to stand for here, and a few years later we saw women elected to this place. It was fantastic to hear from them the questions and the deep thinking they have given to this issue. It was very similar this morning at Kew High School. I must give a shout-out to the school captains Tash and Emily, who did a wonderful job moderating the conversation this morning and who spoke about the importance of why we need to continue to celebrate International Women’s Day, why we need to still champion women’s rights, particularly equality and equity for women in all parts of society.

Among the many questions they asked this morning was: do we need to do more to see women in politics? I think the answer to that question is: absolutely always. We always want to see more women in politics. Women represent over 50 per cent of the community, and we want to make sure that this place represents the community. So anything that I can do to make sure I can encourage those within the Liberal Party to put up their hands over the years ahead I will do.

I was very proud a number of years ago now when I was much younger to be awarded the Dame Elizabeth Couchman Scholarship by the Liberal Party and to go overseas to the United States and learn from what both the Democrats and the Republicans do to encourage more women into the Congress, into the Senate and into their state legislatures in the United States. These were learnings that I was able to take back to the party here, and I will hopefully see these learnings implemented over the years ahead.

As I said, we have many impressive young women, whether that is in the Kew electorate or right across Victoria, but today I wanted to give a shout-out to some local women in the Kew community who work every day to make our community stronger. The member for Hawthorn and Leader of the Opposition spoke earlier and he mentioned a couple of these names, but I think it is only right that I take the opportunity to mention them again today, because they are selfless in what they give to society and they are stalwarts of our local community in a number of ways.

So to begin with, there is Amanda Donohoe from Servants Community Housing. As the member for Hawthorn said, Servants help people on low incomes find safe, affordable housing and a community that they can thrive in. They have four houses across Boroondara, two of which are in the Kew electorate, and they have over 100 residents at those houses that they support. Amanda is a tireless worker for these residents. She gives up her time, time and time again, to make sure that she is promoting their interests in the local community and their interests when she is meeting with representatives like me and my colleague the member for Hawthorn and other influential people in the political sphere and to see of course what she can do to expand Servants. As the member for Hawthorn said earlier, they have established a house that is for women who are victims of domestic violence, and this is a really important local community site that women can feel safe in and that they are able to take refuge in after these awful, awful incidents. So Amanda is one of our many, many powerful local women, and I wanted to mention her today.

In a similar vein, Reverend Natalie Dixon-Monu from Boroondara Community Outreach is one of the hardest workers I have ever met. She runs a community organisation based in Kew that provides support and emergency relief for those who are vulnerable in our community. She is consistently providing that food relief, that support, whether it is to those who might need assistance with Myki, might need access to government systems – she is there to help at all points.

A good friend and someone who is an inspiration as a local small business owner is Anna Salzano. Anna is the president of the Balwyn North traders association and works every day to try and boost the confidence of small businesses in the North Balwyn Village. She makes sure that there are always local activities happening and that she is advocating on their behalf, whether that is around safety concerns, the speed limit or looking at opportunities to increase the tenancy of North Balwyn Village.

There is Hanh Tran, from AVA Boroondara, the Australian Vietnamese Association’s senior citizens club that is based in Boroondara. Hanh is consistently organising local events for the senior Vietnamese community in the local area, bringing them together for song and dance and most importantly for that sense of community that has been so important, particularly over the last few years. I know she went to great lengths during the pandemic to make sure that continued through Zoom and other means, which would not have been the easiest thing to do when you rely on song and dance.

And then, as the member for Hawthorn mentioned, there is Jane Stewart and Nia, who are part of the It’s the Little Things Community, another local community group that gives back to the local community. Jane and her husband Grant started the organisation during COVID, whereby they wanted to provide food relief for people who needed it, especially during the pandemic.

It has grown remarkably quickly, now operating out of a commercial kitchen, and has provided tens of thousands of meals over the last few years to those in need in the local community. And Maddie Murdoch, who is the president of the Bellevue kinder, is working tirelessly at the moment to make sure that the local kinder can adapt to the reforms that are coming into place. Pennie Cornwell, the president of Kew Rotary, is always out there looking for opportunities to make sure that Rotary is giving back to the community, and I was delighted to attend their gala fundraiser dinner just recently. My good friend Vivienne Harkness runs Boroondara Stroke Support Group and organises the Sing for Recovery choir to give victims of stroke and those who are recovering from stroke an opportunity to sing, come together and create that sense of community.

Finally, we have more than 32 schools in the electorate of Kew, and more than half of those principals are women – and incredibly powerful women at that. I obviously cannot mention them all today, but I have a few shout-outs: Davina Bate at Giant Steps, who does such important work for students with autism; Robyn Thompson at St Bridget’s Primary, a wonderful local primary school in Balwyn North; and Josie Millard at Kew High School, who works very, very hard to make sure she is growing a very inclusive and outstanding local high school.

Just finally, I would like to speak about two people I brought into the Parliament today, Svetlana and Leza Solovei, who are refugees from Ukraine. They arrived in Australia about eight months ago after fleeing the war in Ukraine. They spent 10 days in a basement while shells fell, and they managed to escape to Poland and then were able to come out here to Australia. Leza, who is in grade 2 at Sacred Heart Primary School, just a couple of weeks ago, after only a few months at the primary school, was elected class captain. It is a very, very special story, and her mum of course is very, very proud. I had the privilege to present her school badge there last week, and to then bring her and her mum into this place today and to take the opportunity while we were on lunch break to bring her into this chamber and let her sit in the chamber. It was a very special moment for her and her mum. I hope that Leza can take away with her how important it is to see democracy in action, watching question time today, as she looks back to her family that is still in Ukraine, still fighting for democracy over there.

So as we mark International Women’s Day, it is a great honour to speak on this motion, and I wish a happy International Women’s Day to everyone.

Bronwyn HALFPENNY (Thomastown) (15:53): I rise to speak on the motion:

That this house notes that today is International Women’s Day and –

(1) this year marks 100 years since women won the right to stand for election to the Victorian Parliament;

(2) for many years First Nations women did not have the same political rights as other Victorians.

I would argue they did not have the same legislative rights, because even today they are politically disenfranchised. That is why I support the yes campaign to the Voice, and it is also a reason why our Andrews Labor government is working alongside Aboriginal Victorians to build the framework for treaty and establish the Yoorrook Justice Commission.

First, I give greetings and express my solidarity with women and the struggles of women across the globe, including of course my parliamentary colleagues, staff at Parliament and local women living and working in the Thomastown electorate. I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land, make special note of the contribution that First Nations women have made to this country and pay tribute to their strength, courage, compassion and ongoing struggle for justice.

International Women’s Day has taken on many meanings over the years, and I think it is important for us to remember the values, the beliefs and the struggles from which it came. It was a time when women in large and loud numbers began demanding the right to have a voice, the right to vote and the right to decent working conditions and a living wage – a time of social upheaval. It was a time when women began to organise industrially, with strikes in the clothing and textile industry culminating in protests in the United States on 8 March, thus starting the International Women’s Day. It is also a time that we should remember those before us that started this struggle and have given us what we have today. It is also a day to think about how far we have come and how much further we have to go.

International Women’s Day is a truly multicultural and international celebration. Women in Victoria gained the right to vote in 1908, well before they had the right to stand as candidates in an election. As this motion notes, that was not until 1923, and then it was not until 1933 that a woman was successful in getting elected to this place. It is a lesson on how legislative change alone does not necessarily mean political equality. In Turkey, by comparison, although women achieved the right to vote later, in 1934, 18 women were elected into the national parliament the following year due to a program of affirmative action – something the Liberal Party could think and learn a thing or two about.

At this point I would like to be a bit indulgent and pay tribute to my grandmother Margarita Hermina Amelia Korf, who we called Peggy, although on her birth certificate it was not Amelia but put in as Alma. No doubt many Australians with migrant backgrounds have this experience where their names were misspelt on birth certificates or anglicised. I also pay tribute to her twin sister Wilhelmina Gina Katarina Korf, who we called Gina. They were born on 5 May 1917 – the year of the Russian Revolution they always said. Both Peggy and Gina worked every day of their lives to make the world a better place. They were active in their neighbourhoods, their unions, the peace movement and the Union of Australian Women. They believed that people, women, could change the world and make it better for themselves and for the generations to come, and they worked and strived for liberation and for humanity until they physically could not do it anymore. But most people would never have heard of them. Progressive movements need many people to drive change – not all can be leaders, but all are just as important. Peggy and Gina were not public speakers. They were not spokespeople of organisations or figureheads. They were everyday people – the doers, the grassroots activists – and they lived their convictions until the end of their lives.

Peggy and Gina’s parents migrated from Germany to Australia just as the First World War broke out. Their father worked as a ships engineer. As the family lore goes, he jumped ship as it docked in Melbourne, not wanting to return to war-torn Germany. He did not apply for a visa, and he did not get one. He just stayed and got a job as a fitter and turner, working much of his time at the massive Vickers Ruwolt engineering works in Richmond, building large machinery such as road-making and ore-crushing equipment, brewing machinery and hydraulic presses for the Australian car industry. He was a staunch trade unionist and also a member of the Humanist Society. Their mother was originally a governess and a language teacher and later, I believe, started a small business like many new migrants; in her case, a fish and chip shop. But it did not last long because she gave too much away, they said, for free, especially during the Depression. They lived in Lennox Street, Richmond, until they moved to West Heidelberg, and while they spoke German at home, they did not celebrate their culture or pass it on to the following generations. This identity was suppressed due to the racism against Germans and intolerance of cultural diversity at the time.

First I pay tribute to Peggy, my grandmother, a strong trade unionist working in the clothing industry and a member of the Labor Party who spent many hours volunteering for the local MP Brian Howe. I remember as a young child going to his office to lick envelopes. She was an activist in the peace movement and the nuclear disarmament movement. She organised local women in her neighbourhood to sign petitions, attend protests and form local peace groups, going door to door to organise and persuade other women to get involved. She knew Zelda D’Aprano well and was involved in the women’s equal pay movement of the time but kept in the background. Later she supported the Aboriginal land rights movement in the 1970s, and I remember her best friend had her foot crushed by a police horse at a rally. I remember as a small child going with her as she pasted up political posters on walls in the night, and I must have been old enough to read because I worried about the signs that said ‘Posters prohibited’. But she always had time to explain what she was doing and why, and it was always a good reason. I also learned that she was often treated badly because of her beliefs. She was sacked from jobs, and her daughters were expelled from the RSL smocking classes after they discovered Peggy was active in the peace movement. But she never complained and she kept on going.

Next, my great-aunt Gina, an active member of the railways union, worked on the interstate buffet cars and later in the railway workers canteen. She was the first woman to march –

The SPEAKER: Order! The time has come for me to interrupt business for the matter of public importance.

Business interrupted under sessional orders.