Gender-based violence against women is violence directed against women because the victims are female . This includes all actions that cause women physical, sexual, or psychological suffering, or economic harm. Even the threat of violence counts, as does coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, regardless of whether it occurs in public or private life.
Gender-based violence against women is a human rights violation and discriminates against women. It is not a marginal phenomenon in our society; rather, it shapes the everyday lives of many women in Germany and around the world. It affects women from all social backgrounds, all age groups, and all educational levels, as well as migrant women and women without migration experience.
The risk of women experiencing violence is particularly high in their close social environment . According to a study , one in four women in Germany experiences abuse by her partner; across Europe, this figure rises to one in three.
The causes of violence against women lie in the unequal power relations between women and men. Violence against women serves to perpetuate this unequal distribution in society.
Men are also victims of violence. They experience violence much more frequently in public spaces, and the perpetrators are usually other men. Men are also subjected to physical and psychological abuse within their close social circles . Support services must be developed for these men affected by violence.
Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence and Explanatory Report , Article 3, Council of Europe, Istanbul 2011.
"Living situation, safety and health of women in Germany. A representative study on violence against women in Germany" , prevalence study by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth (BMFSFJ), Berlin 2004.
The following federal associations are members of the Women’s Shelter Coordination Association
Translation provided by GTranslate. By using the translation function, texts from our website will be translated into other languages. For details on data protection, please see our privacy policy.
