A third of women across the European Union have experienced physical violence, including threats or sexual violence, according to new findings. While Western countries’ rhetoric about protecting women’s rights has fallen on deaf ears, the statistics show that these claims are unrealistic and, according to reports, women continue to be the first victims of the lack of protection and effective protective laws in the West.
Publish dateSunday 1 December 2024 - 14:46
Story Code : 301658
Afghan Voice Agency (AVA): The findings are based on responses from women aged 18 to 74 from 27 European Union member states and refer to gender-based violence across the European Union from 2020 to 2024, published by Eurostat (the statistical office of the European Union), the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights and the European Institute for Gender Equality, on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.
While a third of women in the European Union have experienced violence at home, at work or in public, younger women have experienced higher levels of sexual harassment at work and other forms of violence than older women, with 42% of young women aged 18 to 29 having experienced sexual harassment at work, the highest rate of any age group surveyed.
However, violence against women in the West often remains invisible, with only a quarter of women reporting incidents to the police or social, health or support services; according to the survey, only one in four women report violent incidents to the authorities.
The highest rates of physical, threatened or sexual violence against women were recorded in Finland (57%), Sweden (53%) and Hungary (49%), while the lowest rates were recorded in Bulgaria (12%), Poland (17%) and the Czech Republic and Portugal (20%) each.
Some women do not report violence that has happened to them due to fear of reprisals, stigma, blame, social exclusion, especially in more traditional societies, or because no one may believe them, but according to the report, the most important reasons for not reporting violence are a lack of trust in institutions and difficult access to justice, which prevent women from seeking justice.
Sirpa Rautio, Director of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, said that the survey only gave a glimpse of the widespread impact of violence on 229 million women living across the EU. One in three European women have experienced being slapped, kicked or sexually assaulted or threatened with such violence.
It is a sad reality that in 2024, women’s safety in the EU will still not be guaranteed. Statistics on violence against women have remained virtually unchanged since 2014, and we are still witnessing the same shocking levels of violence.
The Director of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, noting that there is no safe space for women free from violence and harassment, said: “In 2014, the first EU-wide survey on violence against women showed how much violence women experience every day, everywhere. A decade later, we are still witnessing the same shocking levels of violence, affecting one in three women. The scale of violence against women is very high and there is an urgent need for policymakers, civil society and frontline activists to protect the rights of all victims of gender-based violence and domestic abuse.
Carlene Schiele, Director of the European Institute for Gender Equality, said: “This situation is becoming even more worrying, given the proliferation of misogynistic content on social media.
“Today, in 2024, we are witnessing a rise in gender-based narratives, strategies and movements across the European Union, and the level of violence against women has reached a critical point,” Schiele said. She described the levels of violence as truly staggering and stressed the need for more effective measures to address this pervasive issue.
According to a report by Politico, the digitalization of the workplace has exposed European women to serious cyber-violence, including cyber-harassment, privacy violations and gender-based exploitation through the use of artificial intelligence.
An analysis of the legal frameworks shows that existing European laws on violence against women in the workplace are not yet adapted to address recent developments.
The reports of increasing violence against women in Europe come as trade unions report an increase in violence against women, especially in areas such as healthcare and social care.
According to the Guardian, another European survey found that 72% of trade unions in 15 EU countries do not believe their country’s laws to combat violence and harassment in the workplace are strong enough. According to the report by the European institutions, changing working conditions have led to women increasingly facing physical or virtual harassment; the prevailing conditions in the workplace during the coronavirus outbreak and working from home as a teleworker have increased domestic violence, and the digitalization of the business environment has exposed women to further abuse. Sexual harassment in the workplace affects a third of women, with the highest prevalence reported in Sweden, Finland, Slovakia and Luxembourg; among them, women in Finland (57.1%), Sweden (52.5%) and Hungary (49.1%) have experienced the highest percentage of gender-based violence. In the area of domestic violence against women, Hungary and Romania recorded the highest levels with 29 and 26.8 percent respectively, while the prevalence of abuse outside intimate relationships was higher in Finland, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands than in other EU countries. In fact, the publication of the findings of studies like this on human rights, women's rights and violence against women in the West has removed the false paint from the faces of European countries and has failed the efforts of Western countries to take a stance in support of women's rights.
While a third of women in the European Union have experienced violence at home, at work or in public, younger women have experienced higher levels of sexual harassment at work and other forms of violence than older women, with 42% of young women aged 18 to 29 having experienced sexual harassment at work, the highest rate of any age group surveyed.
However, violence against women in the West often remains invisible, with only a quarter of women reporting incidents to the police or social, health or support services; according to the survey, only one in four women report violent incidents to the authorities.
The highest rates of physical, threatened or sexual violence against women were recorded in Finland (57%), Sweden (53%) and Hungary (49%), while the lowest rates were recorded in Bulgaria (12%), Poland (17%) and the Czech Republic and Portugal (20%) each.
Some women do not report violence that has happened to them due to fear of reprisals, stigma, blame, social exclusion, especially in more traditional societies, or because no one may believe them, but according to the report, the most important reasons for not reporting violence are a lack of trust in institutions and difficult access to justice, which prevent women from seeking justice.
Sirpa Rautio, Director of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, said that the survey only gave a glimpse of the widespread impact of violence on 229 million women living across the EU. One in three European women have experienced being slapped, kicked or sexually assaulted or threatened with such violence.
It is a sad reality that in 2024, women’s safety in the EU will still not be guaranteed. Statistics on violence against women have remained virtually unchanged since 2014, and we are still witnessing the same shocking levels of violence.
The Director of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, noting that there is no safe space for women free from violence and harassment, said: “In 2014, the first EU-wide survey on violence against women showed how much violence women experience every day, everywhere. A decade later, we are still witnessing the same shocking levels of violence, affecting one in three women. The scale of violence against women is very high and there is an urgent need for policymakers, civil society and frontline activists to protect the rights of all victims of gender-based violence and domestic abuse.
Carlene Schiele, Director of the European Institute for Gender Equality, said: “This situation is becoming even more worrying, given the proliferation of misogynistic content on social media.
“Today, in 2024, we are witnessing a rise in gender-based narratives, strategies and movements across the European Union, and the level of violence against women has reached a critical point,” Schiele said. She described the levels of violence as truly staggering and stressed the need for more effective measures to address this pervasive issue.
According to a report by Politico, the digitalization of the workplace has exposed European women to serious cyber-violence, including cyber-harassment, privacy violations and gender-based exploitation through the use of artificial intelligence.
An analysis of the legal frameworks shows that existing European laws on violence against women in the workplace are not yet adapted to address recent developments.
The reports of increasing violence against women in Europe come as trade unions report an increase in violence against women, especially in areas such as healthcare and social care.
According to the Guardian, another European survey found that 72% of trade unions in 15 EU countries do not believe their country’s laws to combat violence and harassment in the workplace are strong enough. According to the report by the European institutions, changing working conditions have led to women increasingly facing physical or virtual harassment; the prevailing conditions in the workplace during the coronavirus outbreak and working from home as a teleworker have increased domestic violence, and the digitalization of the business environment has exposed women to further abuse. Sexual harassment in the workplace affects a third of women, with the highest prevalence reported in Sweden, Finland, Slovakia and Luxembourg; among them, women in Finland (57.1%), Sweden (52.5%) and Hungary (49.1%) have experienced the highest percentage of gender-based violence. In the area of domestic violence against women, Hungary and Romania recorded the highest levels with 29 and 26.8 percent respectively, while the prevalence of abuse outside intimate relationships was higher in Finland, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands than in other EU countries. In fact, the publication of the findings of studies like this on human rights, women's rights and violence against women in the West has removed the false paint from the faces of European countries and has failed the efforts of Western countries to take a stance in support of women's rights.
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