Grace Tame snubbed on national child sex abuse prevention strategy

With the government next week unveiling its strategy to prevent child sex abuse, a shocked and frustrated Grace Tame revealed she was not privy to or asked to help shape the plan.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday announced the government had set aside $146 million for the first four years of the 10-year national plan, which will include extra law enforcement measures and support for victims and survivors.

Further details of the plan are set to be released next week, during National Children’s Week.

Ms Tame rose to prominence via News Corp’s Let Her Speak campaign, and her Supreme Court of Tasmania case to be able to publicly self-identify as a rape survivor.

In 2021, Ms Tame was named Australian of the Year for her advocacy for survivors of sexual assault.

Despite this ongoing advocacy, she found out about the plan and its announcement live on air on Friday afternoon.

“The government’s announcing details of a national strategy to prevent child sexual abuse next week. I am presuming you have been involved in the drafting of that. What can we expect?” ABC host Ros Childs asked.

“No … I haven’t been involved in the drafting of that,” Ms Tame responded.

“I assume you would like to have been,” Ms Childs responded.

“Sure. That is my job, and I have been banging on about it all year; that we should be focusing on prevention.

“But I am not going to be malcontented and complain I haven't been invited to participate in that.”

Asked what she hoped the strategy would contain, Ms Tame told the ABC a multifaceted approach to education on the signs of grooming was a key priority for her.

“We need to hear from the survivors, experts – we need the impact of policy and decision-makers, we need educators. Everyone needs to be involved,” she said.

“The primary means of prevention is education. Knowledge is power. We need to be equipping kids as early as possible.”

Earlier this year, Ms Tame took aim at the government for its track record on women’s safety.

“We’ve seen a proven track record, unfortunately, with this government; its inability to actually choose, its inability to address the fundamental issue of women’s safety within parliament itself,” she said.

The government has been contacted for comment.