EU women too face sexual abuse, violence: Survey

The survey was conducted by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, and was based on interviews with 42000 randomly selected women from all 28 EU member states.

It was found that one in 3 of the 62 million women in the European Union have faced physical or sexual violence since the age of 15, one in 10 has faced sexual violence, and one in 20 has been raped.

Most violence is done at the hands of current or ex partners, with 22% of women having suffered from violence from a partner. 67% remained silent about these incidents, and did not report them to the police.

Violence follows women outside of the home, 55% of women having encountered sexual harassment, often at work.

Surprisingly, the countries with the highest rates of violence were Denmark, Finland and Sweden, followed by the UK and France, all of which are known for their progressive stand on women’s rights. This paradox can be explained by the fact that in countries where women are more empowered, it is more socially acceptable to discuss these problems. There is also a higher awareness about what constitutes abuse.

These alarmingly high figures show that India’s women are not alone in facing unacceptable amounts of violence, a lot of which is never reported to the police.

In the words of Morten Kjaerum Agency for Fundamental Rights, “What emerges is a picture of extensive abuse that affects many women's lives, but is systematically under-reported to the authorities.” He encouraged member states to take action to fight this problem through campaigns aimed at men, as well as women. "Men need to be positively engaged in initiatives that confront how some men use violence against women."

The author is a British national pursuing a journalism course at St Xavier’s College in Mumbai with a keen interest in international affairs.