Just Numbers n n n 1 in 3

Just Numbers? ? ? n n n 1 in 3 women may experience violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime (UN Commission 2000) 40%-70% of women murder victims are killed by an intimate partner (World Health Organization 2002) 4 million girls and women are trafficked for the sex trade annually (WHO 2002)

Auberge Shalom. . . pour femmes Shelter Statistics April 1, 2003 to March 31, 2004 Women in shelter: 74 Children in shelter: 69 Average stay: 24 days Support calls: 572

Intimate Partner Abuse DEBUNK!!!!

Emotional/Psychological/Verbal Abuse n n n Insulting/belittling you Threatening or terrorizing Isolating you from friends and family Treating you with extreme jealousy Spreading rumors about you n n n The ‘silent’ treatment Embarrassing or humiliating you Insulting your race or heritage Accusing you of sleeping around Walking away from you in discussion

Financial Abuse n n Controlling the income Not allowing you to work Controls how you spend your money Steals your money

Physical Abuse n n Shoving, slapping, kicking, punching you Restraining you in any way Pointing a finger at you or poking you Holding or hugging you when it is unwanted

Sexual Abuse n n n Unwanted sexual touching Treating you as a sex object Rape and attempted rape, pressure to consent n n Sexual harassment Drugging someone/having sex while they are too drunk or high to make a clear decision about whether they want to have sex

THE Wheel: i. e. understanding the tactics

Young women between the ages of 25 -34 experience the highest rates of intimate partner violence followed by the 18 -24 age group (Family Violence in Canada: A Statistical Profile 2004)

Warning Signs n n n Is your partner jealous? Does your partner try to isolate you from friends and relatives? Does your partner make threats of violence to intimidate you? Does your partner threaten to harm your reputation? If a male, does your partner believe women are inferior to men and should obey them? Does your partner blame others for own misbehaviors and failures? Does your partner abuse drugs or alcohol? Does your partner have an explosive temper? Does your partner often find fault with you? Is your partner sexually possessive? Does your partner degrade or humiliate you? Are you afraid of your partner’s anger? Of being hurt?

Breaking the Silence In 1983, rape laws were broadened to sexual assault laws and for the first time, made it a criminal offense for a man to rape his wife. In the same year, police were directed by the Attorney General to lay charges in situations of intimate partner violence. Before this, partners usually faced no consequences for such offenses. (CRIAW Newlsetter, Winter 2000)

Astounding! n n n 52% of women students have experienced some form of sexual victimization. 1 in 8 college women have been victims of rape. 1 in 12 college men admitted to sexually abusing women but did not consider themselves rapists. Of the women raped, almost 75% didn’t identify it as such 47% of rapes were by first or casual dates or by romantic acquaintances. Over 1/3 of the women didn’t discuss the rape with anyone, and over 90% didn’t report it to the police.

Government Action Plan 2004 -2009 72 commitments, over half of which are new measures allowing the government to improve his action in this area 4 key focuses: I. Prevention II. Detection III. Adaptation to special realities IV. Criminal and legal intervention

Narina Anwar, age 23

Jeri Elster

Ginet Girma, age 20 and fiance - Addisie

Ginet’s bridesmaids

I refuse to be silent because…

Resources/Websites n n n SOS Violence Conjugale 1 800 363 9010 (24/7) Auberge Shalom 731 -0833 (24/7) Montreal Sexual Assault Centre 934 -4504 n n n www. amnesty. org www. v-day. org www. whiteribbon. ca www. shelternet. ca www. unicef. org