Sexual violence by intimate partners

In many countries a substantial proportion of women experiencing physical violence also experience sexual abuse. In Mexico and the United States, studies estimate that 40–52% of women experiencing physical violence by an intimate partner have also been sexually coerced by that partner. [Campbell JC, Soeken KL. Forced sex and intimate partner violence: effects on women’s risk andwomen’s health. Violence Against Women, 1999, 5:1017–1035.] [Granados Shiroma M.Salud reproductiva y violencia contra la mujer: un ana lisis desde la perspectiva de género. [Reproductive health and violence against women: an analysis from the gender perspective of Nuevo Leon, Asociación Mexicana de Población, Colegio de México, 1996.] Sometimes, sexual violence occurs without physical violence, [Hakimi M et al. Silence for the sake of harmony: domestic violence and women’s health in centralJava. Yogyakarta, Gadjah Mada University, 2001.] In the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, in a representative sample of over 6000 men, 7% reported having sexually and physically abused their wives, 22% reported using sexual violence without physical violence and 17% reported that they had used physical violence alone. [Martin SL et al. Sexual behaviour and reproductive health outcomes: associations with wife abuse in India. Journal of the American Medical Association, 1999, 282:1967–1972.]

Findings from these studies show that sexual assault by an intimate partner is neither rare nor unique to any particular region of the world. For instance, 23% of women in North London, England, reported having been the victim of either an attempted or completed rape by a partner in their lifetime. Similar figures have been reported for Guadalajara, Mexico (23.0%), city-state|León|Nicaragua, (21.7%), Lima, Peru (22.5%), and for the Midlands Province in Zimbabwe (25.0%). The prevalence of women sexually assaulted by an intimate partner in their lifetime (including attempted assaults) has also been estimated in a few national surveys (for example, Canada 8.0%, England, Wales and Scotland (combined) 14.2%, Finland 5.9%, Switzerland 11.6% and the United States 7.7%).

The table below summarizes some of the available data on the prevalence of sexual coercion by intimate partners.

ee also

*Sexual assault

References

External links

National organizations

* [http://www.mencanstoprape.org/ MenCanStopRape.org]
* [http://www.rainn.org/ Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network] , the United States' largest anti-sexual assault organization.
* [http://www.sacc.to/ Sexual Assault Care Centre Scarborough] , An extensive resource for victims/survivors of sexual assault.
* [http://www.theawarenesscenter.org The Awareness Center, Inc. (Jewish Coalition Against Sexual Abuse/Assault)]

upport organizations

* [http://www.aftersilence.org/ After Silence] , online support group and forums and chat room for survivors of rape and sexual abuse, and their supporters.
* [http://www.pandys.org/ Pandora's Aquarium] , an online support group, message board, and chat room for sexual assault survivors and their supporters.
* [http://www.aafv.net/ Support for Victims and Their Family] , Support for Victims and Their Family

Research and information

* [http://www.NotheRapeDocumentary.org/ Award Winning Documentary on Sexual Assault and Healing]
* [http://www.ibiblio.org/rcip/ Rape Crisis Information Pathfinder- research on sexual assault]
* [http://www.sexualassault.army.mil/ U.S. Army Sexual Assault Prevention & Response Program]