TACKLING domestic violence must become a priority for every community leader.
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Almost daily we are confronted by a harrowing story of women and children falling victim to atrocities previously hidden from view.
It's tragic that authorities are only now taking a deeper look into why women and children are dying at the hands of people they should be able to trust.
Yet domestic violence cannot be simply "fixed".
Those who believe legislation designed to restrict alcohol and drug abuse; increasing criminal penalties for perpetrators of violence; and changing court systems will provide a cure for our ills must know such efforts simply tinker at the edges.
It is our attitudes to each other and how we must recognise and change our behaviour; that is the core to making our homes safe.
Family violence is not caused by angry men and not by alcohol or drugs. Family violence is underpinned by power, by disrespect and by accepting behaviour which is unacceptable.
We now have a unique opportunity to change our nation's attitudes for the better.
This week, the Lakes Mail, as part of Australian Community Media, launches the End the Cycle campaign.
ACM, a division of Fairfax Media, is Australia's largest regional news provider with a reach delivering great responsibility and opportunity.
ACM has teamed with Our Watch, a national body committed to ending violence against women and children, to emphasise the importance of working to create awareness of this complex problem.
We are committed to pressuring government to act.
We're committed to getting the message into schools and to teenagers who can provide the momentum for social and attitudinal change.
We're committed to ensuring those who aid and abet violence are held to account and we're committed to educating our communities so they can make a difference.
We want to end the cycle of violence, and it starts here.