Global report calls violence against women a crisis of “epidemic proportions”
According to statistics released Thursday by the World Health Organization (WHO), more than one in three women around the world have been raped or physically abused; 80 percent of this abuse happens in the home at the hands of an intimate partner or spouse.
The report represents the first systematic study of global data on the prevalence of violence against women, according to a release from the organization.
In addition to statistics revealing epidemic levels of violence affecting women and girls in countries across the globe, the report also details the impact of violence on their physical and mental health, ranging from death and serious injury to depression, substance abuse, increased vulnerability to sexually transmitted infections and other negative health outcomes.
This new data shows that violence against women is extremely common. We urgently need to invest in prevention to address the underlying causes of this global womens health problem. Professor Charlotte Watts, from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said in a statement.
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http://www.salon.com/2013/06/20/global_report_says_violence_against_women_a_crisis_of_epidemic_proportions/singleton/
http://www.ctvnews.ca/health/about-30-of-women-suffer-from-domestic-violence-who-study-1.1333868