By Margaret Maccoll
About 200 women and men including councillors Ingrid Jackson and Frank Wilke danced their way toward ending violence against women and girls as part of the worldwide One Billion Rising event.
For the first time in its six year history Noosa police were represented with senior sergeant Ben Carroll joining the gathering, before springing into action to assist a man who had collapsed after being helped from the water.
It is estimated one in three women across the globe will be beaten or raped during their lifetime, adding up to one billion.
Snr sgt Carroll said in just three days last week in Noosa there were three serious domestic violence incidents. In one incident a women, a holiday maker, escaped a violent incident by fleeing an apartment with only a towel wrapped around her. A member of the public drove the woman to the police station. In another incident a man was charged with a strangulation offence after a woman was strangled and survived. Event organiser Peppie Simpson said combining dance, music and community was a powerful way of dealing with a serious issue while enjoying the moment.
