On August 13, 2019, Michaela Dunn died in her Sydney apartment.
She was murdered, allegedly at the hands of a man who then went on a rampage through the CBD wielding a knife and injuring another woman in the neck.
Michaela also suffered injuries to her neck, but she died from her wounds.
She was 24.
She was the 28th woman to allegedly die at the hands of a man in Australia in 2019, the Counting Dead Women Australia researchers of Destroy The Joint tell us.
According to the research, 32 women have died from violence.
Women are the suspects in two of these cases, men have either been arrested or charged in 28 of the murders, and there are two cases where the alleged killer is still unknown.
Violence against women and the numbers attached are terrifying, and they're not slowing down.
The scary reality is an average one woman a week is murdered by her current or former partner.
Here are the hidden numbers. Post continues after video.
Michaela is the second woman to die in August and we're only 15 days in.
In July we lost five women; a 34-year-old who hasn't been named in Melbourne whose partner has been charged. 20-year-old Sabrina Lekaj, whose father has been charged. A retired teacher who allegedly died at the hands of her husband in Queensland, Rita Camilleri who was allegedly killed by her own child, and a woman who was stabbed to death in Ipswich allegedly, again, by her partner.
Unfortunately this number is going to increase. More women will die before Christmas.
In 2018, a total of 63 women died and in 2017 it was 53.
When we write these women's stories, people aren't surprised. They're used to it. We're used to women dying at the hands of men. It's horrendous and we want to scream it from the rooftops and make it stop. But we can't, it keeps happening. It's not stopping.
Michaela was a Sydney girl, she went to school in Five Dock and university a few suburbs away in Broadway. She worked from home in the CBD, and was murdered on the job.
She was reportedly a sex worker, and a man named Mert Ney was allegedly her client on the day she died. He's yet to be charged, but he's accused of leaving her dying alone in her own home while he reportedly fled to a deserted city laneway where he paused to take a selfie, reports The Daily Telegraph.
Michaela's mother told 9News she was a "beautiful, loving woman who had studied at university and travelled widely".
Her Instagram shows a beaming young woman posing with her cat, and her friends, and documenting her travels across the USA, Europe and Sri Lanka.
She shouldn't be dead. None of these 32 women should be dead.
It should also be noted that Michaela's profession had nothing to do with her death.
This shameful epidemic of predominately gendered violence continues unblocked and unstopped to women of all professions.
Teachers, doctors, escorts, nurses, girlfriends, wives, mothers. It doesn't discriminate and it's widespread.
The re-elected Liberal government promised us $328 million for domestic and family violence, with a focus on frontline services and emergency accommodation.
But according to the Women's Electoral Lobby, our demand in this space is actually up around the $754 million mark.
The fact that we're at 32 women by August, shows our figures are on a trajectory to match, if not engulf the last few years' grim statistics.
In the case of Michaela the man accused of her murder is a quite possibly a stranger to her, but that's not the normal story.
It's usually someone known to the victim.
As Fiona McCormack told Mamamia the last time we had to write a story like this, we need to understand that these men are generally not monsters, but everyday people who live among us.
“Violence is the ultimate expression of sexism," she said, and we need to have a "zero tolerance of violence against women". We also need to continue to pull up and examine and question the sexist and derogatory attitudes that exist in our society towards women.
We hate that we have to keep writing this story.
We hate that there is a hashtag called #countingdeadwomen and yet there needs to be one. Because in 2019, like we did in 2018 and 2017 and 2016, we're once again just watching that number go up.
If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000. For more information about a service in your state or local area download the DAISY App in the App Store or Google Play.
Top Comments
Violence is not the ultimate expression of sexism. Men are much greater victims of violence overall, so I am not sure how you can get yourself to that conclusion.
And while men are more violent granted, good men (which are most) are also much more likely to put themselves in harms way to help others, as was shown perfectly the other day.
I am not sure what it achieves to turn what was clearly a mental health related incident re the case in question in to a gender based commentary, as if it is indicative of men generally. That would be like drawing attention to the fact that it is mostly women that kill babies, and making out like it is somehow an 'all female gender' issue.
How can you say her profession had nothing to do with her death?
She died at work and was contacted by a religious fanatic directly because of her profession.
I would hazard a guess misogynist men treat sex workers like objects and it further puts them at risk.
I agree that her profession had a lot to do with her connecting to him and absolutely would put her in harms way more than if she was an Administration Assistant or Florist for example.
I agree with you that men (a small minority of which) are the common linking cause to this systemic violence against women. And, in this case, this pitiful man’s beliefs, attitudes and violent behaviour led to another unnecessary tragic loss of life of a respectable woman just living and working another day, just like the rest of us, and, the other women mentioned in this article.
Thank you Gemma for this important article as I hope more people read, share and talk to help shape and change this current culture in our society and demand change from our elected leaders to commit more of their voice, funding and action to this issue to change the ongoing tragedy that heartbreakingly continues...