Intimate partner violence is old news. And by the looks of the latest domestic violence statistics, nobody could dispute that we’re far from beating abuse at home.
Unlike before, though, it’s no longer treated as a private matter. Due to increasing third-party interference, it’s hard getting harder to sweep incidents of intimate partner violence under the rug.
And that’s good news.
But today at The High Court, we’re going to dig deeper into the prevalence of domestic abuse across the world.
Upsetting Domestic Abuse Statistics (Editor’s Picks)
- As many as 25,000 wives are burned to death in the Indian subcontinent each year.
- More than half of Congolese women have been raped by their intimate partners.
- Over a third of domestically abused Americans are serious violence survivors.
- Battered US women are 75% less likely to die when they don’t leave their abuser.
- American men are victims of domestic violence 12% of the time.
- Globally, 275 million children witness firsthand violence at home.
- Reported intimate partner abuse cases ballooned over threefold in Hubei, China, a month into COVID-19 lockdown.
- Domestic violence support requests from Spanish women spiked by 700% in the first two weeks of April 2020.
Enlightening Domestic Violence Statistics by Country
1. 83% of people in Timor-Leste think domestic violence can be justified.
(Source: ScienceDaily)
Like other Southeast Asians, many Timorese women themselves are more likely to defend abusive spousal behaviors than men.
2. Up to 25,000 women in the Indian subcontinent die due to bride burning every year.
(Source: Eastern Upper Peninsula ISD)
A common form of dowry-related murder, bride burning is an ancient practice that began 2,500 years ago. Despite the legal protections afforded to married women, historical spousal abuse statistics say that bride burning still accounts for the deaths of over 8,000 women each year in India alone.
3. 20 dowry deaths are recorded in India every 24 hours.
(Source: The Guardian)
Thousands of Indian women are killed or take their lives due to harassment by their husbands or in-laws stemming from dissatisfaction over dowry, a custom where the bride’s family pays the groom’s family with money or goods upon marriage.
While the tradition has been outlawed since 1961, the disheartening women domestic violence statistics prove that it has persisted. Dowries continue to exist because of the prevailing notion in India that women are of less value than men and are considered a financial burden.
And it’s not just India:
4. Lethal domestic abuse kills about 5,000 women in Pakistan each year.
(Source: New Internationalist)
It’s not an accident that Pakistan has continuously been ranked among the most dangerous countries for women. The patriarchal attitudes prevalent in many parts of the South Asian nation have subjected female Pakistanis to various horrors.
According to domestic violence statistics, up to 89% of Pakistani women have been abused one way or another. Femicides, honor killings, rape, sodomy, and kidnappings are some of the nightmares they have to live with. Those who weren’t killed from domestic violence were left seriously injured or disabled.
5. 41% of domestic violence victims in Kyrgyzstan have never sought help.
(Source: Human Rights Watch & Reuters)
What makes this figure even more sinister is that about 20% of girls and women in the Central Asian country are abducted for forced marriage, which usually has a rape component.
Victims of bride kidnapping and domestic violence can feel long-term physical and/or psychological distress. One study found out that the babies of kidnapped Kyrgyz brides were smaller than usual, perhaps because of the effect of the ordeal on the mothers.
6. Abusive partners take the lives of at least 6,400 Afghan women every 12 months.
(Source: Gandhara & TIME)
This figure includes just documented cases of aggression against women. Considering that nearly nine in ten Afghan women have been victims of domestic abuse, the actual intimate partner violence statistics could be unfathomable.
Afghanistan has been known to be a living hell for women. Most of them are deprived of economic opportunity and therefore are unable to achieve financial independence. Shockingly, 87% of them are illiterate, while about 66% of girls are out of school.
And that’s not all:
At least 70% of Aghan women are subject to forced marriage, many of whom are 15 or younger. They fear honor killings, too. The combination of these issues could shine a light on why women commit eight of ten suicides in the country.
7. 67% of Syrian wives have been abused by their husbands in front of their children.
(Source: The Syrian Observer)
According to the national statistics on domestic violence, 87% of women have endured physical abuse. Receiving a beating is typical, but some Syrian wives put up with more sadistic acts like being poured on with boiling oil, getting stabbed with metal skewers, being treated like an ashtray, or getting taped over the mouth.
Why are Syrian men so emboldened to do all said atrocities? It’s because the country’s law permits them to hit their wives as a form of punishment.
What’s more depressing is that many Syrian women couldn’t escape domestic violence after fleeing their motherland due to conflict. An undetermined number of Syrian refugees have been unable to find a safe haven from abuse in Turkey, Jordan, and other countries.
8. 92% of Yemeni women admit that violence at home is common.
(Source: UNFPA)
Even without displacement due to war, the human rights of women in Yemen are violated continuously. Reliable sources of the country’s domestic violence information say they’ve been subject to forced Niqab (a piece of clothing that covers the hair and face, except the eyes) and honor killings. Many of them have been involved in child marriage, too.
Life in refugee camps has made the everyday existence of thousands of Yemeni women more unbearable. Despite all of the oppression they’ve grown accustomed to, social norms prevent them from speaking out. In their culture, shame is married to divorce, and getting physically abused carries a stigma.
9. The lifetime domestic violence prevalence in major Saudi Arabian cities can be as high as 44.5%.
(Source: Gulf News)
For the longest time, “Saudi women’s rights” has been an oxymoron. Despite the passage of a landmark law in 2013, ending domestic abuse in the ultra-conservative kingdom remains extremely challenging.
In Saudi Arabia, a woman often remains a victim of domestic violence because of myriad reasons.
First, the subject has been considered taboo; anyone who tries to swim against the current is likely to lose the blame game.
Second, the country’s male guardianship system has plagued Saudi women.
Third, tribal intervention has likewise allowed perpetrators of domestic violence to enjoy impunity.
10. Almost 20% of South African women have experienced sexual intimate partner violence.
(Source: CSVR & BBC)
Unfortunately, many men in South Africa learn how to abuse women at a young age. According to a 2009 survey, 25% of responders admitted that they had raped someone during their adolescence, and about 50% of them had been multiple offenders.
In another study, one of the dreadful women abuse statistics unearthed was that 50% of South African men have confessed to having committed intimate partner violence. Male perpetrators could come from all walks of life, from famous athletes to average men on the street.
11. 72% of gender-based violence cases in Somalia are between spouses.
(Source: UNDP)
As in the rest of the Horn of Africa, the state of domestic violence in Somalia doesn’t improve due to unique factors. The apathy of religious leaders and elders toward victims, lack of police training focusing on domestic abuse, and minimal female law-enforcement officers are some of the major roadblocks that maintain the anti-women status quo.
12. In Lagos, Nigeria, intimate partner violence reports have gone up by 87.57%.
(Source: Pulitzer Center)
The surge in domestic violence statistics in 2018 in the country’s largest city might seem tragic to outsiders. But women’s rights advocates and government authorities interpreted them as a positive trend.
To them, the increase could constitute greater women empowerment, indicating that more abuse victims have been able to summon the courage to report their assailants, despite some discouragement from society.
13. 53% of Congolese women have experienced marital rape.
(Source: ReliefWeb)
Most women in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have suffered from different forms of abuse. But the sexual kind has grabbed the headlines for a reason. One of the domestic violence facts in the DRC was that rape was used as a weapon during the five-year war in the east of the country.
Even if they have the opportunity to do so, many rape survivors don’t report what happened to them because the entire process can be frustrating. It’s not uncommon for hospitals to refuse to admit and examine women for sexual abuse without payment or police order.
As a result, most rapists of Congolese women continue to roam freely, including in territories outside the areas of conflict.
14. 38% of wives in Malawi have been battered at least once in their lives.
(Source: UN Women & Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations)
Current physical abuse stats indicate that the Malawian society continues to tolerate wife battering. Domestic violence in the country knows no cultural and socio-economic backgrounds.
This issue used to be settled in private, but the government and human rights advocates have begun to intervene and help put a stop to it. Among the many excuses for wife battering has been dissatisfaction with a dowry, which remains to be a part of marriage rites in the country to this day.
15. Only 12% of people in Latin America and the Caribbean think domestic violence is justifiable.
(Source: ScienceDaily)
Although gender equality in the region is wanting, matriarchal cultures can thrive across it. Most people in the region actually don’t approve of hitting women. In the Dominican Republic, for instance, no more than 3% agree that domestic violence is defensible in particular situations.
Insightful Stats on Domestic Violence in the United States
16. 26% of women and 15% of men have experienced teen dating violence.
(Source: CDC)
As many as 81 million Americans have gotten their first taste of intimate partner abuse before turning 18. Clearly, domestic violence starts early.
At some point, unhealthy adolescent relationships can cause teens to develop bad habits like smoking or drinking, become antisocial, suffer from depression and anxiety symptoms, and contemplate suicide.
17. 15% of all violent crime is intimate partner abuse.
(Source: NCADV)
According to data collected by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV), an additional 6% of domestic violence incidents are committed by either family members or other relatives. Also, the most common domestic abuse culprits are current and former intimate partners.
It gets worse:
18. American women experience 4.8 million physical assaults and rapes at the hands of their intimate partner every year.
(Source: National Organization for Women)
With such a shockingly high figure for a developed nation, it’s no wonder why the US has been an outlier on the list of worst countries for women.
Not all women are at the same level of risk of getting battered or sexually abused, though. Age, income, and race or ethnicity are key determinants of victimization of domestic violence in America.
19. More than 33% of domestic abuse victims have survived severe non-fatal violence.
(Source: Bureau of Justice Statistics)
Two-thirds of intimate partner violence cases from 2002 to 2011 involved a physical attack. It’s a trend that has been observed since the mid-1990s. From 1994 to 2011, the rates of serious domestic abuse in the country fell by 72% and 64% for women and men, respectively.
20. Nine in ten female domestic abuse victims go through extreme emotional distress.
(Source: ScienceDirect)
When we looked at the US domestic violence statistics more closely, we learned that more than 47% of them deal with PTSD, 20% get depressed, and over 14% live with anxiety.
21. Battered women who stay with their abusers are at a 75% less risk of getting killed by them.
(Source: ScienceDirect)
Physical abuse survivors are in a Catch-22. Their home isn’t a safe place for them, but leaving ironically puts their lives at greater risk. Although the police spend a third of their time answering domestic violence-related calls, organizations like the National Domestic Violence Hotline help provide victims with ample support without putting them in a tight spot.
22. Being a woman of Indian ancestry raises the likelihood of domestic abuse victimization by over 100%.
(Source: National Organization for Women)
Despite growing up with Western ideals of love, many Indian-American women end up allowing their parents to find them a husband. That’s why it’s not unusual for these single ladies to meet eligible bachelors raised in India.
These men likely bring their patriarchal attitudes with them to the US, which could explain the greater domestic violence prevalence among American women of Indian descent.
23. 12% of intimate partner violence cases involve a male victim.
(Source: Office of Justice Programs)
According to domestic violence against men statistics, female assailants are almost twice as likely to use a weapon than their male counterparts. Maybe female abusers feel the need to equip themselves with a gun or a knife to neutralize men’s physical strength.
24. Every day, approximately 11,300+ requests for services from domestic violence survivors are unanswered.
(Source: NNEDV)
Victims of intimate partner abuse have various needs, but government agencies and nonprofits have been struggling to assist everyone. The programs designed to provide the abused with emergency shelter, transportation, child care, housing, legal representation, and other essentials don’t get enough funding to serve every survivor accordingly.
Illuminating Domestic Violence Demographics
25. Up to 275 million children are exposed to domestic violence worldwide.
(Source: UNICEF)
As many as 88 million of them reside in South Asia. In India and Pakistan alone, an estimated 75.1 million young ones see violence inflicted on their parents with their own eyes. Such a great number could be attributed to both countries’ massive populations and deep-seated cultures of domestic abuse.
Now:
Even if they’re just witnesses, children are victims, too. It’s imperative to prevent the young ones from getting exposed to abuse in order to sustain their healthy development. Since domestic abuse victims tend to abuse other people, this vicious cycle will continue in the future if the current generation isn’t protected.
26. On average, 36% of people in developing countries find domestic violence defensible under certain circumstances.
(Source: ScienceDaily)
Based on a study conducted from 2005 to 2017 involving 1.17 million individuals from 49 low- and middle-income nations, the societal acceptance of domestic abuse can vary considerably.
Here’s how:
Researchers found that South Asians are the most tolerant of violence in the home, as 47% of them agree that a range of situations call for it, including burning food, going out unannounced, refusing to have sexual intercourse, and neglecting the children. Meanwhile, 38% of Sub-Saharan Africans and 29% of Europeans and Central Asians share the same sentiment.
The study’s findings suggest that high domestic violence rates and acceptance levels are correlated to women’s economic rights. More economically empowered women are more capable of challenging prevailing social norms surrounding gender roles.
Moreover, men from more democratic countries find domestic abuse less acceptable. The frequency and recency of political instability in a territory could negatively affect male perceptions of gender-based violence.
27. 54% of transgender people have been in abusive relationships.
(Source: National Center for Transgender Equality)
In terms of severe physical harm, recent domestic violence statistics reveal that more transgender people have actually experienced it at the hands of their intimate partner than the general population (24% vs. 18%).
These eye-opening figures underscore the notion that transgender individuals make up one of the LGBT community’s more vulnerable sub-groups to violence.
28. 61% of bisexual women have been stalked, battered, and/or raped by an intimate partner in their lifetime.
(Source: VAWnet)
Lesbian women have also experienced domestic violence at a higher rate than their straight counterparts (44% vs. 35%). When it comes to male victims of domestic violence, 8% more bisexual men than heterosexual ones have suffered from intimate partner abuse. Domestic violence prevalence is lowest among gay men; only 26% of them have been down that road before.
29. 29% of Black transgender people have been coercively controlled in a relationship.
(Source: National Center for Transgender Equality)
The victims’ transgender status has been targeted frequently. Their abusive intimate partners have been allegedly guilty of threatening them with being outed to others, keeping them from taking their hormones, or telling them that they’re not a real “man” or “woman.”
Alarming Domestic Violence Statistics During COVID-19
30. Domestic violence reports in China’s Hubei province increased by 244% in February 2020.
(Source: The Guardian)
As the original epicenter of the Coronavirus, the province experienced lockdowns before the rest of the world did in order to help contain the disease. Although Hubei’s quarantine was a success, it led to heightened abuses behind closed doors.
31. The number of women’s hotline callers in Hong Kong jumped by 100% from January to March 2020.
(Source: Amnesty International)
During this three-month period, 70% of domestic abuse statistics showed physical violence, while 30% was mainly verbal and emotional.
32. Reported family violence incidents in Singapore ballooned by 33% in February 2020.
(Source: CNA)
This figure contrasted the downtrend observed from 2016 to 2019 based on the declining number of personal protection order applications.
Social workers at AWARE believe that social isolation may be causing incidents of abuse to escalate more quickly, as evidenced by the upsurge in domestic violence since stay-at-home notices were given to the Lion City’s residents.
33. Cases of “family harm” in New Zealand spiked by 20%.
(Source: NZ Herald)
Recorded on the first Sunday following the March 29 lockdown, this figure was compared with incidents reported in the three previous Sundays.
Sadly, experts acknowledged that it was expected since highly stressful events in the past, like the 2008 financial crisis, similarly drove domestic violence stats up.
34. At least 10% of Australian women in a relationship have experienced physical or sexual abuse during the pandemic.
(Source: Global Citizen)
A July survey of 15,000 Australian women revealed that more than one in ten respondents had suffered domestic violence over the past 90 days. Over half of the victims said that the nature of the abuse had intensified, while another one-third confessed that the violence was unprecedented.
Key takeaway:
These domestic violence statistics in 2020 suggest that situational stressors like job insecurity or financial distress have aggravated abusive behaviors.
35. Calls to Colombia’s domestic violence helpline rose by 130% in the first 18 days of mandatory quarantine.
(Source: Statista)
Line 155, a dedicated hotline for female victims of all kinds of sexist violence, received a mind-blowing 91% more calls than the previous year.
These statistics of domestic violence echo the observations throughout Latin America in the time of COVID-19. Compulsory confinement has created a perfect storm for people living with abusive partners. Less access to first responders has made it more difficult to receive help from the government.
36. 46% more emergency distress domestic violence calls were made in Mexico during the first half of 2020.
(Source: America Magazine)
The authorities have received over 130,000 reports related to domestic violence. But a human rights activist who spoke on behalf of a network of shelters said that the rise in the number of reported abuse incidents was actually 80%.
Either statistic of domestic violence indicates that Mexican women have been dealing with two crises at once:
Gender-based violence and COVID-19. The former may be older, but the latter has compounded it.
37. In Argentina, calls to 144 jumped by 25% during the quarantine.
(Source: diario21.tv)
The government is aware that increased tensions and economic pressures could exacerbate abusive relationships. To enable victims to seek help with less risk, apps were rolled out to aid the existing domestic violence service helplines.
In hopes of further reducing the prevalence of domestic violence in the country, the abused have also had the option to request assistance through WhatsApp and App 144 since March 2020.
38. In Brazil, homicides against women and femicides have gone up by 22% since the onset of the pandemic.
(Source: Americas’ Global Role)
Normally, two women fall victim to domestic violence every minute, while seven female-targeted murders happen every day on average in the country. But extraordinary waves of violent crime have engulfed Brazilian communities since social distancing orders were put in place.
While the rising cases of homicide have likely stemmed from conflict between criminal groups, it’s clear that women haven’t been spared from the aggression.
39. With 221 attacks, Bolivia’s Coronavirus hotspot was also the center of family violence during the confinement period.
(Source: RPP)
Not coincidentally, the Santa Cruz region accounted for half of the country’s COVID-19 infections in April and also recorded nearly 50% of the family violence statistics reported in the nation from the 1st to the 11th of the month.
It was bad enough that Bolivia has the highest rate of femicide in Latin America, with 2 deaths per 100,000 women. But the overall climate of violence at home even worsened, as the worry over coronavirus contraction, confinement, money, and lack of activity deepened.
40. Nearly 88,500 domestic abuse incidents were reported in Turkey from January to May 2020.
(Source: Middle East Institute)
The government claimed that the number of women killed in May (81) was less than the stats on domestic violence recorded in the same period last year. It contradicted the trend in other countries, where the occurrences of domestic abuse have risen since pandemic-induced lockdowns were enforced.
Nevertheless, unlike other governments, the Turkish authorities haven’t publicly condemned abusers. Reports also highlighted that some women were not being given proper protection from violence because of their marital status.
41. Domestic violence crisis calls quadrupled in Canada after the lockdown was put in force.
(Source: BWSS)
Such a rapid rise of probable abusive statistics during the pandemic has exposed the link between home isolation and domestic violence. It indicates that the situation makes it easier for the abuser to control the movement of the abused, keep the latter away from safety networks, and minimize access to support services.
42. 700% more Spanish women sought domestic violence support via email or social media in the first half of April.
(Source: The Guardian)
Spain’s dedicated helpline saw a stark uptick in calls by as much as 47%. However, there was a sharp drop in complaints directly reported to the police. It suggests that isolation might have made it much trickier to ask for help. After all, the support of loving people around the victim was needed to file a formal complaint about the abuse.
43. Domestic violence reports in Italy declined by about 44% during the first 22 days of lockdown.
(Source: Reuters)
Meanwhile, the country’s top domestic abuse hotline received 55% fewer calls during the first two weeks of March. These figures might not indicate more amity in Italian households, though. A parliamentary committee was convinced that they likely meant there was a graver prevalence of unreported domestic violence.
44. The national abuse helplines in the UK registered a 65% spike in calls in one weekend in March.
(Source: BBC & United Nations)
Further, calls, emails, and site visits to national domestic violence charity Respect have shot up by 97%, 185%, and 581%, respectively.
Government critics say British policymakers have been failing survivors of domestic violence by delaying the establishment of a more robust legal framework that can meaningfully protect victims and sufficiently punish abusers.
Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, support for specialist domestic abuse services in the country was already eroding. The pandemic just highlighted the government’s weak commitment to protecting victims of spousal abuse, especially those belonging to minority groups.
45. Domestic violence reports from Parisians went up by 36% 11 days into the lockdown.
(Source: Euronews)
And it wasn’t just Paris:
The rest of France recorded at least 30% more incidents of domestic violence less than two weeks after public movement was restricted on March 17.
The country already had one of the worst of intimate partner violence prevalence in Europe before the pandemic. And being confined with an abusive person only made it worse. Women’s rights activists suspected that statistics about domestic violence must be greater in reality since as many as 80% of incidents in France go unreported.
46. 3.6% of German women were raped by their partners during the period of strict contact restrictions.
(Source: Movendi International)
Additionally, more than three in ten women were also victims of physical abuse while stay-at-home orders were in place. However, researchers couldn’t say whether these figures were worse since previous studies covered longer time periods.
47. Cyprus’s domestic violence hotlines rang over 30% more frequently during the spread of Coronavirus.
(Source: The Globalist & CyprusMail)
From the time the government imposed COVID-19 measures to the day they were relaxed, 990 incidents of domestic violence were reported. According to the police domestic violence statistics in 2019, this four-month figure almost matched the total number recorded in the country in the entirety of last year.
Moreover, in a span of about 45 days after the mid-March lockdown, the cases of abuse occurring within Greek Cypriot households grew by 58%.
48. The first six months of 2020 saw 20% more violence between Finnish spouses.
(Source: Xinhua)
When it comes to the number of violent acts between unmarried couples, the rise was 67%. Eight times out of ten in both categories, men were the assailant.
49. Gender-based aggression in Kosovo increased by 17% in March.
(Source: UNFPA)
The statistics on domestic violence and sexual exploitation in the territory climbed as anxiety about the pandemic worsened.
To make matters worse, the government imposed a 13-hour curfew to curb the spread of the disease. Due to the fear of getting stuck with abusers for extended periods, victims were encouraged to capitalize on the free-movement window to get out of the house and stay in a shelter.
50. Domestic abuse calls in Russia went from fewer than 6,060 in March to over 13,000 in April 2020.
(Source: The Moscow Times & Voice of America)
This figure came from the country’s high commissioner for human rights. But data from the Ministry of Interior said that it didn’t increase more than twofold. In fact, the official domestic violence statistics from April 2020 say that the prevalence of abuse shrank by 9% from the same month in 2019.
Wrap-up
With the way things are going, domestic violence is bound to get worse before it gets better. But at the very least, more of us are now beginning to realize that abuse is just a symptom of a bigger problem. As we gain a deeper understanding of the roots of intimate partner violence across different social contexts, we’ll make more progress toward eradicating it.
FAQ
Q: What is domestic violence?
The general notion of domestic violence is physical assault. However, it’s not the only way an intimate partner could hurt another. Sexual, emotional, verbal, and economic abuse can likewise be considered as domestic violence. Control, isolation, intimidation, and stalking also fall in the same category.
Arguably, some seem more threatening than others. But all are equally concerning nevertheless. More often than not, women are at the receiving end of acts of domestic violence.
Q: How common is domestic violence?
Domestic violence exists anywhere in the world. The World Health Organization says that 30% of women who have been in a relationship reported that they have been victims of physical and/or sexual abuse from their intimate partner. Even worse, nearly four in ten murdered women are killed by their boyfriend or husband.
Conflict and displacement could worsen prevailing domestic violence. In addition, it could expose women to new forms of abuse at the hands of their partner and other people.
Q: Where is domestic violence most common?
Domestic violence prevalence is highest among developing nations due to societal acceptance. By 2010, the rates of intimate partner violence among partnered women between 14 and 70 years old in low- and middle-income countries in Southeast Asia, the Eastern Mediterranean, and Africa were 37.7%, 37%, and 36.6%, respectively.
Meanwhile, only 29.8% of women in low- and middle-income nations in the Americas, 25.4% in Europe, and 24.6% in the Western Pacific experience some form of violence from their intimate partners.
Q: How many cases of domestic violence are reported each year?
In the US, fewer than half of all domestic violence incidents are reported to the police. Most cases go unreported because the perpetrator is someone the victim loves and cares about. Such a reality can be hard to swallow, so many sufferers keep quiet and don’t tell others about it.
Sometimes, abuse is tricky to identify. Unless a victim or a person close to the victim is perceptive about not so obvious signs of domestic violence, evidence of the act could go unnoticed.
When domestic violence is properly identified, a victim may not report the incident due to fear. Some victims are afraid that other people won’t believe them, especially when there are no witnesses to support their claim. The abused may also dread being judged by their loved ones or bringing shame to their family.
Another reason why most abusers are not behind bars is that they’re not always abusive. At first, they may be loving intimate partners. Once their abusive behaviors surface, they could come up with convincing excuses in order to avoid punishment and receive forgiveness.
Q: Which country has the highest rate of domestic violence?
There’s limited country-specific data about domestic violence, so it can be difficult to determine where precisely it is most prevalent. However, several studies have revealed that women in Africa tend to suffer from different types of domestic violence than anywhere in the world.
According to the World Health Organization, 58.5% of women aged 25 to 29 from Equatorial Guinea have been subjected to fairly recent physical and/or sexual abuse by a current or former intimate partner.
Based on data from Ending Violence Against Women, almost six in ten Ethiopian women have experienced sexual violence, while about 50% of Zambian wives have been battered by their partners.
Q: Which state has the highest domestic violence rate?
A disturbing 59% of adult Alaskan women have endured intimate partner violence, sexual abuse, or both. The Last Frontier has been considered the worst place for women in the US on many occasions because male dominance is pervasive throughout Alaska.
The origins of violence are often complex, so it’s not easy to definitively uncover the catalysts for intimate partner abuse without extensive research. But police officers and prosecutors may have some explanations for why Alaska has the highest domestic violence statistics by state using empirical data.
Here’s the thing:
The authorities point to excessive alcoholism. The use of illicit drugs is also rampant in the state, especially in The Bush (a colloquial term for remote regions the road networks don’t reach) that has little to no law enforcement.
These culprits, however, couldn’t be solely responsible for the pervasive domestic abuse in Alaska. In places where everybody knows everybody, it would take an entire village to cultivate a culture of intolerance to violence.
Q: How does domestic violence affect the victim?
Domestic violence could get lethal, so death is the worst fate that awaits victims. Those who survive are physically and/or mentally scarred for life.
What’s more, many survivors experience sexual dysfunction due to the abuses they’ve gone through. Women could also contend with menstrual cycle problems as well as other reproductive health issues. In some settings, domestic violence increases the risk of contracting a sexually transmitted disease like AIDS.
Continuous research will throw further light on the effects of intimate partner abuse on a person. But all we need to do is examine the latest domestic violence statistics from 2021 to imagine the desperate plight of survivors.
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