Across four states of Australia, four women and three children were murdered over six days between Easter and ANZAC day including the high profile murders of two sisters in Victoria on Easter day and the murder of a two year old NSW girl hospitalised on Easter Sunday after being raped by her stepfather. 

A fourth child was left in critical condition in a burning car by her father in Western Australia the same weekend. The women were all killed by their former or current intimate partner and the children by their father or stepfather. 

All were the innocent victims of domestic and family violence. But shockingly, this violence isn't isolated.

The rise in domestic violence is being described as an "epidemic" going unchecked, with latest figures showing more than one woman is killed every week in Australia by this violence.

Our support services are overwhelmed. We can't keep up with demand from those who do escape – meaning we don't have places for half the women who need urgent accommodation.

Yet as the toll rises every week, our governments are acting like this is business-as-normal.

We can change this. Governments have led extraordinary efforts to put a stop to other sorts of violence and health crises' – and they can do this for domesticand family violence too.

We're calling on Prime Minister Tony Abbott to do two things immediately: convene a national crisis summit with heads of the states and territories, lawmakers and experts to tackle this issue head on. And personally film an ad declaring this violence an emergency – just like Obama and other world leaders have done.

It's time to say we're fed up with this violence killing women and children every week.

It's time to not only break the silence, but end the inaction and broken system that's letting this happen. Please sign and share our petition.