The Most Dangerous Place For Women Is The Home, According To A New Report From The United Nations
A new study from the United Nations says that the most dangerous place for women is their own home, CNN is reporting. The study was released on November 25, which is also the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) studied statistics surrounding gender-related killing of women and girls. Shockingly, 58 percent of the approximately 87,000 women killed last year were killed by a partner or family member. This percentage amounts to a stunning 50,000 women. Over a third of women murdered in 2017 were killed by a former or current partner, and 137 women are reportedly killed by family members every day.
Overall, murder victims tend to be male — and are most likely to be killed by a stranger. For women, however, it is more likely for them to be killed by someone they actually know, rather than a stranger. Asia is technically the area with the highest amount of female victims who were killed by a partner or family member, with 20,000 reported cases in 2017. This number is followed by 19,000 cases in Africa, 8,000 in the Americas, 3,000 in Europe, and 800 in Oceania.
It should be noted, however, that the populations of these areas effect the results. Technically, the areas with the highest rates of women killed by a partner or family member are Africa and the Americas. In Africa, these murders accounted for 3.1 victims per 100,000 of the female population and in the Americas, the rate was 1.6 victims per 100,000 of the female population. This is in comparison to only 0.9 per 100,000 in Asia. Europe reportedly had the lowest rate, with 0.7 female murders per 100,000 women.
About 6 women were killed by intimate partners or family members every hour in 2017!
We must step up efforts to counter violence against women and girls before it escalates into gender-related killing.
New #UNODC report: https://t.co/YtuzAnDfhC#HearMeToo #OrangeTheWorld #16days pic.twitter.com/3kpSyrGYrS— UN Office on Drugs & Crime (@UNODC) November 26, 2018
These new statistics show an increase from the numbers recorded in 2012, with the amount of women having been killed by a partner or family member coming in at 48,000 women, or 47 percent of all female murder victims. As far as solutions to this problem go, the U.N. is recommending that police officers, the criminal justice system, and health and social services begin to work together to combat the problem. In addition, the study says that men in particular should speak up regarding the issue — and advocate for the safety of women.
“In order to prevent and tackle gender-related killing of women and girls, men need to be involved in efforts to combat intimate partner violence/family-related homicide and in changing cultural norms that move away from violent masculinity and gender stereotypes,” the study read.
According to UNODC Executive Director Yury Fedotov, these gender-based killings can be the result of “gender inequality, discrimination and negative stereotypes.”
