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Is there less domestic violence now than in the past?
Like all violent crime in Canada, rates of domestic violence have fallen in recent years.
This decline is partly due to increased social equality and financial freedom for women, which makes it easier for them to leave abusive relationships at earlier stages. It is also due to years of effort by groups who are working to end domestic violence.
Their achievements include improved public awareness, more treatment programs for violent men, improved training for police officers and Crown attorneys, having the police lay charges rather than the victim, more co-ordination of community services, and the creation of domestic violence legislation in some areas of Canada.
Still, despite this good news, some disturbing trends are emerging:
– In 2010, the rate of intimate partner homicide committed against females increased by 19%, the third increase in four years. During that same period, the rate for male victims fell by almost half.
– After falling for a decade, rates of domestic violence have now flat-lined. In 2009, the rate of self-reported spousal violence was the same as in 2004.
– Victims are now less likely to report an incident to police.
– More women are experiencing violence after leaving their abuser.
Source: http://www.canadianwomen.org/facts-about-violence#SOURCES
CFUW Cranbrook
