Other forms of violence against women: 1,200-kilometre-long caravan
Some four million women. Or, in other words, a caravan of buses full of Central American and Dominican women that would span the distance between Guatemala City and San José, Costa Rica. Women between the ages of 15 and 49 who have been beaten, threatened, yelled at or raped by their partners at some point in their lives, according to figures from the largest and most comprehensive global study to date, published in The Lancet scientific journal.
Worldwide, more than one billion women have been victims of physical or sexual assault in their lifetime. According to the study that uses data from the World Health Organization (WHO), this represents 27% of the world's female population between 15 and 49 years of age. In the countries of Central America and the Dominican Republic, the prevalence is 22% when taking the entire life cycle into account. One in 10 women suffered one of these types of aggression and violence in the last year.
The data are overwhelming. Is it acceptable for women and girls to continue suffering this way in our societies? In this Data for Action we will use the available data to analyse those other forms of violence, the continuum of violence that almost exclusively affects women and girls.
Map of estimated prevalence of physical or sexual violence, or both, in the past year at the hands of the intimate partner among women age 15 to 49 who had a partner at some time, in 2018
Source: The Lancet
Does available data accurately reflect the real scope of the problem in each country, particularly when taking into account that victims do not often report this type of aggression for fear of reprisals, out of shame or due to a lack of confidence in the response of governmental systems? In addition, it is important to take into account that information registries for this type of violence are deficient in some countries.
Graph 1. Total sexual crime in Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras (2019-2021)
Source: Prepared by authors with data provided by Belize, BCO (2019-2021), Costa Rica, OIJ (2019-2021), El Salvador FGR (2019-2021), Guatemala INE (2010-2020) and PNC data validation by the INE pending (2021). Offences correspond to: Belize, rape (no distinction in terms of sex); Costa Rica, rape (female); El Salvador, rape, aggravated rape in minor and helpless, rape of a minor or helpless (female); Guatemala, rape, consummated rape and unconsummated rape (female).
The continuum of violence
The UNDP report on The Hidden Face of Insecurity points out that violent transgressions against women, such as domestic violence, sexual crimes, human trafficking, disappearances and violent gender-related deaths or femicides/feminicides the most prevalent crimes in the sub-region. This is called continuum of violence, affecting women and girls especially. This state of vulnerability is exacerbated by different forms of discrimination and social exclusion based on factors such as age, ethnic background, disability and socioeconomic status, to name a few.
Graph 2. Continuum of violence against women in Guatemala (2021)
Source: The Public Ministry Integrated Case Management System (SICOMP), data generated on 25 February 2022, INE validation pending. National Civil Police (PNC)-Statistics Section, validation by INE pending. Demographic projections as per 2018 CENSUS.
Graph 3. Continuum of violence against men in Guatemala (2021)
Source: The Public Ministry Integrated Case Management System (SICOMP), data generated on 25 February 2022, INE validation pending. National Civil Police (PNC)-Statistics Section, validation by INE pending. Demographic projections as per 2018 CENSUS.
Analysing and comparing data on this type of violence in a country like Guatemala brings several elements to light. First, it is evident that sexual crimes affect women more than men. Second, there is a high incidence of disappearances of women, particularly among girls and young women between 10 and 19 years of age, which is also the age group most affected by sexual violence. Third, it is striking that the "ignored" age segment is the majority.
Violence against girls and women permeates different spheres of society, at school, work and in the community. Likewise, it certainly affects them at home, which is the most unsafe space for a large number of women. Looking at data from Costa Rica, a country with two issue-specific laws – namely the Law against Domestic Violence and the Violence against Women Law – in 2021, 10,448 were detained for domestic violence, and 7,617 for violence against women. This is a slight decrease of -1.7% and -0.3% compared to 2020.
Graph 4. Detentions by police in Costa Rica by year and type, 2020-2021
Source: Ministry of Public Security, 2020 and 2021.
The available data show some of the developments in terms of gender-responsive information management, and its use for public policy. But at the same time, some challenges still remain, such as the need to apply a multidimensional approach, and deepen comprehensive solutions through policies with an intercultural vision, recognizing the intersectional nature of gender and ethnic identities in societies characterized by cultural diversity, such as those in Latin America.
There are only eight years left to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 5 (SDG). One of its targets is to "eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation." No society will be just, peaceful and cohesive while women and girls remain victims of violence. Certainly there is still time, but we must hasten the solutions, so that we do not have to speak again of a new figurative caravan of violated women. The clock is ticking.
UNDP Regional Hub for Latin America and the Caribbean, Gender and Governance Team
Imagen: Nadine Shaabana, Unsplash
Data in Motion
Check out the infographics on the situation of violence against women and girls prepared by the UNDP InfoSegura Regional Project:
