A French woman living in Melbourne has gone viral for praising Australia as a “safe” country where she feels comfortable walking the streets alone at night.
The Paris-born woman, named Sonia, took to Instagram earlier this month to share a video of her walking down a darkened street while explaining how “safe” she felt.
“POV: you’re walking alone at 1am and remember that feeling safe as a woman is NOT normal. But… in Australia it is,” Sonia wrote.
Some social media users agreed that they “feel safe” in Australia, while others rushed to the comments section to warn the young woman about the dangers facing Australians.
“Something like 200 women have been killed in gender based violence attacks in the past two years, Australia is not a safe place to be walking alone at night! Stay safe everyone,” one person commented.
“Australia may feel safer than some other places but please don’t share this as if it’s some kind of wonderland here where women can safely walk alone at night because that is absolutely untrue,” another woman agreed.
“I love that you are enjoying your experience, but please do not be complacent. Evil exists everywhere and we have lost our share of beautiful innocent women,” said a third.
One Aussie said “I love my country”, but reminded others that “it’s not that safe at night to be walking alone as a woman”.
Another person urged Sonia to view recent crime statistics in Australia’s major cities. “You will soon realise it’s not safe for women or men alone at night! Please be careful,” they added.
Gender-based violence has been classified as a “critical national issue” in Australia, with the Bureau of Statistics stating that one in three Australians will experience physical violence in their lifetime.
“We found that an estimated 4 million men and 3 million women have experienced physical violence since the age of 15,” said head of crime and justice statistics Will Milne.
The agency said both men and women are three times more likely to be attacked by a male perpetrator, with 74 per cent of attacks on men occurring outside the home, like a pub, bar, or in the street.
For women, 70 per cent of incidents occur inside the home, most often by a current or former partner.
Anthony Albanese’s government has committed to ending gender-based violence by 2032.
With the National Plan, the government has pledged to improve the family law system and provide thorough guidance on the prevention of violence, and more support for victims.