This story has good intentions but we need to fix every problem here in this country long before we give our money away to people far from our shores who don't often appreciate the interference, resent being told what to do and have little respect for the effort. there are many good causes here in Australia that can't do as much as they would like to do because of the classic tale "a lack of funding" if we ever reach a situation where there is an "abundance" of funding, money flowing over the brim of the coffers of the struggling AID agencies in this country then by all means take the residual, just don't hold your breath waiting.

yesterday was international women's day, today is someone's cultural day. Unless you address some parts of culture and people pretending that all cultures are equal then you will never address violence against woman. All people are equal, all cultures do not deserve equal value attributed to them. Babies in womb are slaughtered in our 'culture'. We can hardly point the finger at others.

I agree fully with the first post here. We should be helping our own people as much as possible before we give even one cent to any foreign country. Foreign countries should be helping their own people and those countries and governments should be held to account if they don't.
The only other thing I would like to add is that I suspect much of the violence here in Australia that the writer talks about is imported violence, imported by allowing foreigners into our own country. It stands to reason that if we allow people from countries with high rates of violence to migrate here, then they will bring some of their 'culture' and violence with them.
Being a likely migrant herself or from migrant parents I suspect the write is simply expressing racist views, telling us the same old story, that we are bad because we have not solved other countries problems. Tell me Teresa why those countries are not helping Australians here solve our problems.

I agree, but we do need to focus more on domestic issues? Like the extremely high rate of domestic violence in indigenous communities, here and in our near Pacific neighbours.
We should become far more proactive in this area; because, we are the wealthiest most advanced nation in our region!
If we don't, then there are others with far less ultruistic motives, who will do it for us, to our eternal disadvantage!
Besides, it creates goodwill and an economic upside over time, for us here at home! Rather than, like missonaries of old, because of a misguided belief that we are somehow our brother's/sister's keeper.
That said, American women seem to be complaining that they are going backwards, with regard to equality issues.
Strange, given they make up at least 55% of the voting population, control or own over 60% of that nations wealth, and around 80% of the property?
This factor is largely because they as a demographic, outlive men by 6-7 years, and inherit wealth and property!
They should understand, that as a group they are masters of their own destiny; unlike PNG women, who can be murdered by superstitious men, who seem to blame witchcraft or magic, for most of their negative outcomes, or the death of a loved or respected relative.
We simply cannot, in all good conscience, turn our backs on that sort of stuff!
But need to ensure, with our aid dollars, that their respective education systems are robust enough, to bring these folk, kicking and scream if necessary, into the 21st century.
Rhrosty.

Ms Gambaro,

>Australia's foreign aid budget for 2012/13 is $5.2 billion. Of that, $1.1 billion is scheduled to be spent in PNG and the Pacific.<

Given that, in the whole of this hyper-drive world, Australia is only 'big brother' to our most immediate small island neighbours, AND THAT the horrifying statistics in your article refer to those specific neighbours, I find it extraordinary that only such a small portion of our foreign aid budget is dedicated to helping these, who, together with New Zealand, are arguably of greatest cultural, geographical and physical significance to us, and to our indigenous peoples - with whom they would have compelling anthropological as well as cultural ties (even if they - our indigenous people - don't immediately recognise this relationship or proclaim any great interest in it).

So, where does the bulk, $4.1 Billion, of our foreign aid go? To help much larger and far more distant nations? Why, and to what aim? Sucking up to our more lucrative trade-related 'interests' I suppose? (= reverse 'colonialism'?) Where indeed is our 'soul', our altruistic, compassionate and Geo-political 'heart'? (And, I certainly hope we are not giving aid to that xenophobic, human rights abusing military dictatorship to our north, Indonesia, unless such aid is miniscule and has some very hefty strings attached.)

If we had any guts, any real interest in the value and virtues of 'multiculturalism' - in its relevance, potentially and ideologically to overcoming the destructive ethnic and cultural divisiveness abounding within our very disturbed global 'community' - we would be looking to strengthen bonds with our geographical 'kin', our 'Australasian' community. Our 'example' could well be a catalyst, a 'pilot study', for a visionary global focus on 'community' and on cooperation - in place of the capitalistic myopic materialism and competitiveness currently consuming so much potential and so much human dignity around the globe. (TBC>)

(Cont'd>)
We need a global compact - let the big nations, the true world leaders, tend to fostering cooperation and a focus on human dignity with other 'large' or troublesome global constituencies, and let us, and other relatively small nations look to our immediate 'garden' our home 'patch' and its needs. We are small fry, and need to live within our capacities and our very real limitations.

>The Gillard Government's hijacking of $375 million from the foreign aid budget..<
Gutless, electioneering mania; this Gillard government has no soul, no real 'vision'; its 'heart' is lost in an outdated and counterproductive ideology.

Violence and abuse has its roots in cultural disarray and in an all-consuming competitiveness deriving from a lack of opportunity, a lack of dignity, and a lack of hope. We, as a global community, have to restore hope and dignity, with a universal ethic of 'no-one left behind'. Without that, we are only bailing a fast-sinking boat.