Sweden, Canada and Ireland. It was the three countries that in 1990 had legislation that made partner violence illegal. So it was approx. one percent of the world’s population, protected from partner violence by law. If you lived in any other country, partner violence was not something you could report to the police. Even 20 years ago, eight out of ten people in the world were still not protected by laws against domestic violence. It became more common during the 2000s and 2010s. But today the picture looks completely different. New figures from the World Bank show that nine out of ten people globally are protected by a law that makes domestic violence illegal. It is a major step forward, which marks an important step on the road to greater equality. – Adopting laws on gender equality is the first step in securing women’s rights, writes the World Bank in a report on the figures. A global problem But even if almost the entire world’s population lives in countries with laws against intimate partner violence, it is still a global problem. Every year, billions of women and men are subjected to intimate partner violence, with women being the most vulnerable. – Violence against women is the most serious expression of inequality between the sexes, and is still part of women’s lives everywhere, writes the World Bank. Globally, almost every third woman has experienced some form of violence from either her boyfriend, spouse or date, and the violence does not come without consequences. It has both serious psychological and physical consequences and in the worst case can end in death. In 2021 alone, more than five women or girls were killed every hour by either an intimate partner or a family member. It is therefore extremely important that we put an end to violence once and for all. More than just laws But intimate partner violence does not stop simply by adding it to a list of crimes. It is particularly about how the laws are handled in reality. The World Bank states that the laws cannot stand alone if we are to achieve equality. They must also be used and enforced in reality, so that they do not remain just words on a piece of paper. So, according to the World Bank, before a law really works, it must go hand in hand with, among other things, national action plans, money and various political initiatives such as national crisis hotlines and crisis centres, which offer protection, food, a roof over your head, medicine and psychologist sessions. Unfortunately, we are lagging behind here. The World Bank’s report shows that women’s safety – which not only covers intimate partner violence, but also femicide, child marriage and sexual harassment – scores low. This is particularly about the fact that not enough measures are initiated to support the laws, such as national action plans, investments and political initiatives. There is thus still a gap between the laws and the crucial help that is needed before it can put an end to partner violence. But even if that is the case, the laws are still important. According to the World Bank, the laws are necessary and decisive in order to achieve women’s rights. Because without the laws, there would not have been as much reason and will to, for example, create national action plans, create crisis centers and national crisis telephones, which can help on the way out of the violence. Beyond that, the laws can also start the conversation about intimate partner violence and push the culture in the right direction. The World Bank emphasizes that the laws can both lead to more initiatives, but that they can also help to give women more rights.
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In 1990, only one percent of the world’s population lived in countries where intimate partner violence was a criminal offence. Now it is 90 percent.
