'We are dying at extraordinary rates': ACT marches to end male violence

Canberra's Sandra Rajic has had enough of women dying from male violence.

"This time last year, there were 16 women dead. As of today, we have 31 who have died by violence this year."

Ms Rajic is organising a march on Parliament House to call for change in our handling of men's violence.

She wants the government to take more steps to protect Australian women and children.

Fellow rally organiser Kathryn Allan said abuse of women had reached a crisis point in Australia.

"These marches are calling for no more deaths, no more violence. Enough is enough. We are dying at extraordinary rates, and it is only getting worse," she said.

"The TikTok trend asking women if they'd rather be stuck in the woods alone with a bear or an unknown man says everything, really. I haven't seen a single person who said they'd rather be with an unknown man.

"Women are not men's punching bags."

Seventeen rallies are being held across the country this weekend, including in regional towns such as Ballarat that have recently lost local women to domestic violence.

The rally is part of the No More: National Rally Against Violence movement, which is protesting the recent deaths of women in Australia.

Senator David Pocock is expected to attend, as well as several women's rights groups in Canberra.

What Were You Wearing, who are organising the rallies, says 31 Australian women have been killed by male violence since the start of the year.

That includes the women murdered in Bondi Junction earlier this month, and the alleged murders of Samantha Murphy in Ballarat and Molly Ticehurst in Forbes.

The organisation is calling on the federal and state governments to acknowledge violence against women as a national emergency.

The group also wants better funding for domestic and sexual violence services, alternative reporting options for rape and DV, and mandatory victim-blaming training for first-responders.

The cause is close to the heart of many Canberrans, who still remember the horrific murder of Tara Costigan at the hands of her ex-partner.

Her uncle, Christopher Costigan, said women still weren't safe in Australia.

"Women are still being killed, the AVO system doesn't seem to be working very well. The government needs to listen to the people at the coalface," he said.

"I just hope that changes are made, that women are made to feel safe and strong.

"At the moment, I don't know how they could feel safe."

Ms Costigan was murdered by her ex-partner in 2015 while holding their newborn daughter. She had recently taken out an interim domestic violence order against him.

Supporters will meet at Regatta Point in Commonwealth Park at 2pm on Sunday, April 28 and march on Parliament House.