And these were just the cases that were reported.

Are you shocked by that statistic?

That’s because very few people are willing to talk about domestic violence in a way that is helpful to the community.

Because what’s more frightening than the alarmingly high number of incidents reported are the ones that are not.

We might want to turn a blind eye but the reality is that it is a problem in our community.

Support groups and local police have all admitted as much.

And they are trying their hardest to raise awareness and eliminate the problem from the city but they require assistance. 

Mount Austin High School’s Clontarf Academy have teamed up with police to put on an event this weekend.

They are hoping it will be led by men, who are predominantly but by no means the sole perpetrators of domestic violence.

The walk will be a show of respect, solidarity, support and awareness, all of which are crucial if the community is ever going to move towards eradicating the issue.

It’s admirable that students would be willing to put their best foot forward for such an issue and a true credit to teachers and the program’s organisers.

But with something that is so easy to hide, so hard to talk about and so hard to detect by sight, is there an easy solution to this problem?

Asking people nicely to not abuse their partners or children hardly seems effective.

Police cannot monitor each household individually and most victims aren’t even comfortable telling a friend or family member.

It’s perhaps what makes events such as this weekend’s White Ribbon walk so important. 

It gives the issue a face, a voice and a presence in the community.

It’s a way of showing perpetrators that it will not be tolerated and victims that there is someone there to listen and help.