The Governor of Queensland (Australia), Her Excellency Ms Penelope Wensley AC, has lent her support to the ‘Zonta says NO’ campaign and was photographed at Government House with Member of the Australian Parliament and Zontian, Ms Jane Prentice, Brisbane City Council councillor, Ms Vicki Ryan, and District 22 Lieutenant Governor-elect and organiser of Brisbane’s highly successful ‘Zonta says NO’ walk, Amena Reza, from the Zonta Club of Brisbane Metro Breakfast.

The Australian Government announced on 19 November that it will provide $1 million to the White Ribbon campaign to help reduce violence against women, particularly in culturally and linguistically diverse communities. For the past decade White Ribbon Day, which coincides with the UN’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (25 November) has been working to stop violence through education, preventative programs, partnerships and creative campaigns.

Many Zonta clubs work collaboratively with the White Ribbon campaign, recognizing that one in three Australian women over the age of 15 has reported experiencing physical or sexual violence at some point in their lives. The $1 million funding will expand the activities of the White Ribbon campaign and build on the Government’s plans to ensure implementation of the National Plan to Reduce Violence against Women and Children 2010-2022.