VIOLENCE

AGAINST
WOMEN
****************************************************
END VIOLENCE TOGETHER
For The Dignity Of Every Woman
Presentation Overview

 What Is Violence Against Women?

 How Common Is It?
 Why Focus on Violence Against Women?
 What Is The Impact?
 What Can We Do To End Violence Together?
Violence Against Women Includes:
 Sexual Assault

 Violence in Relationships:
Also called Domestic Violence, Domestic Abuse,
Family Violence, Battering, Spousal Abuse,
Intimate Partner Violence

 Criminal Harassment or Stalking

 How Common Is
Violence Against Women?

“Violence against women is a persistent and ongoing problem in

Canada and around the world. It affects women’s social and
economic equality, physical and mental health, well-being and
economic security.”

Measuring Violence Against Women: Statistical Trends 2006

How Common Is
Violence Against Women?

“Estimating the prevalence of violence

against women—the number of women in the
population who are affected by
violence—is challenging due to the very
private nature of these experiences.”
Measuring Violence Against Women: Statistical Trends 2006
Statistics Canada
How Common Is
Violence Against Women?

“Victims' decisions to report the violence to

criminal justice and social services depend on
a variety of factors, some of which include fear
of the offender, shame and embarrassment,
and regional availability of services.”
 How Common Is
Violence Against Women?

 Almost 40% of women in Canada have been

sexually assaulted since age 16

 Approximately 1 in 3 girls and 1 in 6 boys will

experience some form of unwanted sexual contact
before they reach 16.
 How Common Is
Violence Against Women?
 6% of sexual assaults are reported to the police in Canada
(E Division, RCMP, 2005)

 In the year 2000, 24,000 sexual assaults were reported to

police in Canada. (Statistics Canada)
 In the year 2000, 3,700 sexual assaults were reported to
police in BC. (Statistics Canada)
 This means that in the year 2000 over 400,000
women in Canada and over 61,000 women in BC
were sexually assaulted.
 How Common Is
Violence Against Women?
 61% of sexual offences reported to police in 2003 involved
victims under 18 years old. About 80% of those victims
were girls.
 In some First Nations communities in BC, over 90% of the
women have experienced sexual violence.
 53% of women who live with disabilities from birth have
been raped, abused or assaulted.

 As with all forms of violence against women, immigrant

women, refugee women, poor women and trans-gendered
people are more vulnerable to sexual violence.
How Common Is
Violence Against Women?

 10,273 incidents of violence in relationships were reported to BC

police in 2005:

 9% increase since 2004

 74% involved a male offender
 16% involved a female offender
 represents 26% of all assaults in BC
How Common Is
Violence Against Women?
Number of spousal homicide victims in Canada 1975- 2004

Female Male
Newfoundland and Labrador 15 7
Prince Edward Island 6 1
Nova Scotia 62 24
New Brunswick 52 7
Quebec 497 87
Ontario 753 186
Manitoba 123 48
Saskatchewan 98 59
Alberta 244 97
British Columbia 293 104
Yukon 9 5
Northwest Territories 22 11
Nunavut 4 2

Canada 2,178 638

How Common Is
Violence Against Women?
 In 2004:

 75% of criminal harassment (“stalking”) incidents reported to the police

were directed at women

 50% of the women were stalked by a person with whom they had an
intimate relationship

 Stalking is the number one risk factor for actual and attempted murders of
women (McFarlane et. Al, 2002)

 90% of people reported for stalking are men Measuring Violence Against
Women: Statistical Trends, Statistics Canada, 2006)

 Two thirds (66%) of all criminal harassment incidents occurred at the

victim’s home.
 Sexual Assault Against Women and Children in BC, 2005

10%
2%

88%
Level 1 Sexual Assault: any forced sexual contact without bodily harm

Level 2 Sexual Assault: forced sexual contact causing or threatening to cause bodily harm using a weapon (imitation or real)Level 3 Sexual Assault:
forced sexual contact that causes aggravated bodily harm or endangers the life of the survivor or others
Sexual Offences Against Children: sexual touching or interference, sexual exploitation and incest
Types of Violence Experienced by Women in Canada, 2004

Threatened, threw
something (27,900)
Beaten, choked, 11%
used a gun/knife,
sexually assaulted
(99,060)
39%

Pushed, shoved,
slapped (101,600)
40%
Kicked, bit, hit, hit
with something
(25,400)
10%
 Rate of Criminal Harassment Against Women, By Age
In Canada, 2004

45 years and over

14%

under 25 years
34 to 44 year olds 41%
18%

25 to 34 year olds
27%
Why Focus On Women?

International Agencies such as the

United Nations, the World Health
Organization, and Amnesty
International have identified
violence against women as a global
human rights issue.
Why Focus On Women?

Women are more likely than

men to be the victims of the
most severe forms of spousal
assault, as well as spousal
homicide, sexual assault and
stalking.
Why Focus on Women?
Women are:
 6 times more likely than men to report being sexually
assaulted

 5 times more likely to require medical attention as a result

of assault

 3 times more likely to be physically injured

 Almost twice as likely to report being threatened with or

having a gun or knife used against them

 Much more likely to fear for their lives or the lives of their
children
Why Focus on Women?
Gender-based violence is perhaps the most wide-spread and
socially tolerated of human rights violations.

It both reflects and reinforces inequities between men and

women and compromises the health, dignity, security and
autonomy of its victims.

United Nations Population Fund (2005)

What is Violence Against Women?

Sexual Assault

 Any form of sexual contact without a person’s consent,

including the threat of sexual contact without consent

 Can range from unwanted sexual touching to forced sexual

intercourse
What is Violence Against Women?
Sexual Assault
 Level 1: Sexual Assault [s.271]

 Level 2: Sexual Assault with a Weapon, Threats to a Third

Party, or Causing Bodily Harm [s.272]

 Level 3: Aggravated Sexual Assault [s.273]

What is Violence Against Women?
Sexual Assault
151 Sexual interference with a person
under age 14
152 Invitation to sexual touching with a
person under age 14
153 Sexual exploitation of a person aged 14
and under 18
155 Incest
163.1 Covers child pornography
What is Violence Against Women?
Sexual Assault
 The victims of William Pickton were sex trade
workers and drug users, many of whom were
Aboriginal women

 Most of the women who were murdered or

have gone missing on Highway 16 are
Aboriginal women

 The women and girls who were victimized by

Donald Bakker were Vancouver area sex trade
workers and under-age girls in Cambodia
What is Violence Against Women?
Sexual Assault

 Sex offences are less likely than other violent

offences to result in charges against a suspect
and adults charged with sex offences are less
likley than other violent offenders to be found
guilty

 Sex Trade workers are more at risk of violence

and homicide than the general population and
their cases are less likely to be solved.
What is the Impact?
Sexual Assault

 Psychological/emotional:
Fear of physical injury, mutilation and/or
death
Anger
Humiliation
Shame
Guilt
Shock
Sleep disturbances
What is the Impact?
Sexual Assault

Serious physical injuries

Unwanted pregnancies &
miscarriages
STDs including HIV/AIDS
Headaches & fatigue
Loss of appetite/nausea
What is the Impact?
Sexual Assault

Self Blame
Loss of hope
Minimization/Denial
Loss of a Sense of Esteem
Loss of a Sense of Power
Shattering of World View
Loss of a Sense of Safety & Trust
What is the Impact?
Sexual Assault
 Addictions  Sexual difficulties
 Self-esteem  Eating disorders
 Self-injury  Emotional
 Suicidal ideation difficulties
 Fears/anxiety  Sleep disturbances
 Physical symptoms
 Relationship issues
 Dissociation
experiences
 Parenting issues
What is the Impact?
Sexual Assault

Family members may experience:

Anger
Helplessness
Shock
Disbelief
Guilt
Fear
These may be directed at the survivor
What is Violence Against Women?
Violence In Relationships
 Violence In Relationships - Policy

The Criminal Justice System

response in BC is guided by:

 The Attorney General

Violence Against Women In
Relationship (VAWIR) Policy

The RCMP Violence In

Relationship (VIR) Policy

The Crown Counsel Spouse

Assault Policy
 Violence In Relationships

In recent years, there have been a number of

dramatic & tragic deaths of women and
children as a result of domestic violence:
 Sherry Heron and Anna Adams in Mission
 Lorraine Moon in Alert Bay
 Denise Purdy in Nanaimo

In Quatsino, Sonya Handel’s six children were

killed by her estranged husband who was
troubled and abusive
 Violence In Relationships
The experiences of Heron, Moon, Purdy and Handel
reflect the reality of many women in our culturally and
geographically diverse province & highlight the need to
provide pro-active outreach to assist women with
disabilities, Aboriginal, immigrant and rural women

Coroners’ inquests and/or local inquiries revealed what

were missing in all these cases:
a coordinated response system
a network that could identify and address risk and
provide specialized support in a coordinated and
productive way involving a variety of systems

These BC findings echoes similar inquests outcomes in

Ontario
Violence In Relationships - Pregnancy

In Canada, 1 In Every 5 Women Assaulted

By A Partner Is Assaulted During Pregnancy
Statistics Canada, Family Violence in Canada, 1999
Canadian Women’s Foundation’s Violence Against Women Fact Sheet
Violence In Relationships - Separation

In Canada:
· 1,056 intimate partner
homicides in a ten year
period
 846 women killed (80%)
 210 men killed (20%)
 70% of deaths had a history
of domestic violence as
noted by police*

 Family Violence in Canada, A

Statistical Profile, 2004
Statistics Canada
What is the Impact?
Violence In Relationships

Children who are exposed to violence in the home

suffer from emotional trauma, have poor educational
outcomes, and are at increased risk of using violence to
solve problems.
Berman, H., J. Hardesty and J. Humphreys. 2004. Children of abused women.
In Humphreys, J. and J. Campbell (eds.) Family Violence and Nursing Practice. New
York: Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins
What is Violence Against Women?
Criminal Harassment
On August 1, 1993, the Criminal Code was
amended to create the new offence of criminal
harassment. It was introduced as a specific
response to violence against women,
particularly to domestic violence against
women. However, the offence is not restricted
to domestic violence and applies equally to all
victims of criminal harassment.
 What is Violence Against Women?
Criminal Harassment
Examples of Criminal Harassment:
calling you over and over again, and perhaps hanging up
whenever you answer the phone
contacting you on the Internet or through constant e-mail
messages
following you, your family or friends
leaving threatening voice messages
sending you gifts you do not want
watching you or tracking where you go
threatening you, your children, family, pets or friends
Ending Violence Together
Support Services

 VictimLINK (1-800-563-0808)
 Over 400 service programs to assist in violence against
women and children including:
 Community-Based Victim Assistance Programs
 Stopping The Violence Counselling
 Outreach Programs
 Transition Houses
 Safe Homes
 Second Stage Housing
 Children Who Witness Violence
 Helpline for Children (310-1234)
Ending Violence Together
Support Services
Community Support Services Can Provide Practical Assistance for Survivors:
• development and/or revision of safety plan
• assistance with getting copies of court orders
• explanation of procedures and accompaniment to meetings with police,
Crown, etc.
• assistance in completing forms
• liaison with systems
• court accompaniment, accompaniment to sentencing, hearing, if requested
• assistance with transportation, if requested
• provision of, or assistance in securing, translation where needed or
available
Ending Violence Together
Safety Planning

 Support workers are trained to assist a woman

to develop a plan which addresses her unique
situation and risks

 A safety plan is important because it is easier

to plan ahead than to plan while dealing with a
crisis.

 Women are able to assess and adapt safety

tips from other women who have abusive
current and former partners.
Ending Violence Together
Coordination

“Sexual assault does not fall neatly into the

category of a health issue, counselling issue,
criminal justice issue or human rights issue – it is
all of these. Therefore, no one system alone can
provide an effective response to sexual assault. A
consultative, coordinated or collaborative response
from the health care, counselling and criminal
justice systems will have the best chance of
meeting the needs of a survivor of sexual assault.”

Working Together to Respond to Sexual Assault

Linda Light, June, 2000
 Ending Violence Together
Coordination
This belief in the need for a collaborated approach is
echoed by Aboriginal and Immigrant communities

It is not possible to effectively address violence against

women while working in isolation

Ending Violence Together requires

us to work collaboratively
THANK YOU