The Helen Clark Foundation is proud to announce their latest project, with support from Clare, undertaking a major research and advocacy programme exploring how New Zealand should better address sexual violence against women.
While New Zealanders often think of our country as among the safest places in the world to be a woman, there are increasingly significant weaknesses in our policies and laws – weaknesses that increase the risk of sexual violence against women and present major barriers to victims as they engage with the justice system.
This project will explore four key areas in which New Zealand’s legal and policy frameworks are failing victims of sexual violence, propose workable improvements and work with MPs from across the political spectrum, as well as policymakers and civil society to get real change made.
The project will focus on under-reporting of sexual violence, inadequate definitions of consent in legislation, emergence of deep-fake AI pornography, and practice of virginity testing.
The project team will also consult with a broad range of legal experts, community advocates and decision makers.