To the editor:
One in three Canadian women will face sexual assault in their lifetime. Kelowna has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in B.C.
Karen Mason, executive director at Kelowna Women’s Shelter was recently quoted saying: ‘We are full most of the time; we see women and children in need of protection, every day, yet rape crisis centres and domestic violence shelters across Canada remain underfunded. The federal government does not have a stand-alone policy on intimate partner violence or sexual assault.”
Regretfully, our local Kelowna-Lake Country Conservative MP Ron Cannan doesn’t consider ending violence against women a priority. Recently, he voted against Anti-violence Against Women legislation. Bill M-444, put forward by Niki Ashton of the NDP, which included a National Action Plan to address Violence Against Women. This legislation has been enacted with great success in other countries such as the US, UK and Australia.
Cathay Gibson,
Kelowna
