Hundreds of people have marched in solidarity through Melbourne's inner north following the second violent attack on a woman in a public park in as many months.
On Tuesday afternoon, a woman was raped, choked and nearly drowned while out for a jog near the Merri Creek in Coburg.
The Merri Creek trail, which snakes through the northern suburbs of Brunswick, Northcote, Coburg and Thornbury, is a popular jogging and recreational area.
The attack took place during daylight hours in the Bowden Reserve parkland, close to the Harding Street footbridge that connects Thornbury and Coburg.
Sunday evening's Reclaim Our Merri Creek march began about a kilometre away in Mayer Park, where another man allegedly attacked a woman at knifepoint while she was walking her dog in October.
Thornbury resident and event organiser Belinda Lo said Mayer Park was a "very well-used and well-loved" area for her.
"I'm here to be with my community to reclaim the space after a number of serious assaults have happened on women, perpetrated by men, in our local area," she said.
"A number of us use these public spaces on regular basis and we all have a right to be free from violence as we use our public spaces, especially women."
News of Tuesday's attack sparked anger and memories of the unrelated deaths of Melbourne woman Eurydice Dixon and Arab-Israeli exchange student Aiia Maasarwe, who were both killed in public places.
"I was feeling really, really sad for the victim survivors, I was feeling really upset and angry that our beautiful public spaces have had a taint on them from these assaults," Ms Lo said.
"So we want to reclaim that again. We want to take that feeling away and reclaim that space. This belongs to our community."
Local Amanda Watkinson said she had been feeling "a little bit unsafe in the world" and was much more concerned about her children's whereabouts.
Her daughter, Mirriyindi Watkinson, said she had felt uneasy walking around the area, even during the day, "knowing that it's happened again".
"We're here because … the Merri Creek is women's business. So we feel like a part of that reclaiming is actually us reclaiming back what is a women's place," Amanda Watkinson said.
The Moreland City Council, which encompasses Brunswick and Coburg, has ordered a safety audit of the Merri Creek corridor.
The council said it would work with Victoria Police and the Merri Creek Management Committee to "understand safety improvements that can be made to the corridor".
Police stepped up patrols of the area last week.
Ms Lo said increased security and lighting in the area should be just part of a response to the violence.
"What needs to be done is looking at men's violence against women on a systemic level," she said.
"A few lights in the park are a good start, but we need much more than that."
Coburg man Joel Russo was charged with several alleged offences over Tuesday night's attack, including 10 rape charges, and is due to return to court on March 12.
