The City of Ballarat will write to the Prime Minister and Federal Minister for Women to call for a Royal Commission into femicide and gender-based violence.
Ballarat Mayor Tracey Hargreaves told the Brolga the issue is “very personal to us here in Ballarat”, and “the whole culture needs to be involved in shifting this”.
As of November, 41 women have lost their lives to violence in Australia in 2026.
What happened? The Mayor raised the motion at the October council meeting.
“I think it is just so high in the collective consciousness that women continue to be hurt and killed,” the Mayor said, speaking to the Brolga in November. “We’ve just reached the point where we’ve all had more than enough.”
She said that there are many “strong opinions on either side of this debate”, particularly due to the expense of a Royal Commission.
The background: The Mayor cited the work of Sherele Moody and her She Matters mural on Hancocks Lane as key inspiration for pushing the issue.
“The fact we have the She Matters mural is really a testament to what Ballarat has been through,” she said. “Particularly losing three women in the space of a few months”.
In 2024, three Ballarat women were killed in quick succession in a matter of months - Samantha Murphy, Hannah McGuire and Rebecca Young.
According to the Ballarat Foundation’s 2025 Vital Signs Report, family violence in the region increased by 28.8 percent in 2025, against a state-wide increase of 8.86 percent.
What’s that? The She Matters campaign began with the Red Heart Movement and Australian Femicide Watch, founded and run by journalist Sherele Moody.
Moody began the project in 2015 to track the deaths of Australian women and children following horrific deaths in her own family.
Moody worked closely with Women’s Health Grampians to bring the mural to Ballarat.
What people said: The Mayor spoke of taking her children to the mural, speaking to both about their experience viewing the wall.
“That is the point of the wall, that it makes it real,” she told the chamber.
Councillor Jay Morrison added that “the vast majority of perpetrators are men. This is not a comfortable fact but it is a fact”, and said the conversations matters “with mates, with colleagues, with sons”.
Councillor Tess Morgan said that “women will be safer if community leaders consistently model and promote respectful, non-violent behaviour and create safer spaces for conversations around gender violence”.
“That is what we are doing tonight, and that is what we will keep doing”, she said.
Councillor Samantha McIntosh emphasised that “enough is enough”, and Councillor Des Hudson echoed Councillor Morrison’s sentiments on the “overwhelming statistic” of male perpetrators of violence.
Four community organisations - the Ballarat Foundation, Allied Justice, Committee for Ballarat and Soroptimist International - also provided submissions in support of the motion.
If you or someone you know is experiencing family violence, help is available 24/7 by calling 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732.
In Western Victoria, Respect Ballarat, Meli, Sexual Assault and Family Violence Centre, Emma House, Orange Door and Child and Family Services Ballarat are also available to provide resources and support.