Why Training Is Not Improving the Police Response to Sexual Violence Against Women: A Glimpse into the ‘Black Box’ of Police Training

Abstract Background Sexual violence against women is a major public health issue and a breach of human rights. Although various consequences of sexual violence on health have been described in a large number of scientific publications, very little is known about this topic in Estonia. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence of sexual violence and associations between exposure to sexual violence and risky health and sexual behaviours among women in Estonia. Methods A population-based cross-sectional study was carried out in Estonia in 2014. Self-reported data regarding selected indicators of risky health and sexual behaviours were collected from 1670 women, aged 18–44 years, via a self-administered questionnaire. To measure the prevalence of sexual violence, questions from the NorVold Abuse Questionnaire were included. Chi-square and multivariate logistic regression were used to analyse the data. Results Of the respondents, 22.7% (n = 379) reported being exposed to sexual violence during their lifetime, and over half of these women had had these experiences before the age of 18. Statistically significant associations were found between sexual violence and smoking (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 1.32, 95% CI 1.03–1.70), alcohol consumption (AOR 1.52, 95% CI 1.18–1.95), illicit drug use (AOR 2.21, 95% CI 1.70–2.89), sexual intercourse for money or other material reward (AOR 3.51, 95% CI 1.62–7.61), concurrent sexual relationships (AOR 2.64; 95% CI 1.80–3.86), and being diagnosed with sexually transmitted infections (AOR 1.48, 95% CI 1.09–2.01). Conclusions In Estonia, sexual violence against women is widespread and is associated with several risky health and sexual behaviours. Efforts should be made, both among the general public and professionals, to raise awareness regarding the prevalence and negative impact of sexual violence. Women who have been exposed to sexual violence are in need of professional medical, legal and psychological help free from prejudice to help them recover from such traumatic events.

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Violence against Amazon women

Revista Latino-Americana de Enfermagem ◽

10.1590/s0104-11692009000600007 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 17 (6) ◽

pp. 968-973

Author(s):

Vera Lúcia de Azevedo Lima ◽

Maria de Lourdes de Souza ◽

Marisa Monticelli ◽

Marília de Fátima Vieira de Oliveira ◽

Carlos Benedito Marinho de Souza ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Content Analysis ◽

Sexual Violence ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Exploratory Study ◽

Print Media ◽

Social Phenomenon ◽

Amazon Women ◽

Regional Newspaper

This quantitative and exploratory study analyzed violence against Amazon women presented in print media according to type and severity, and whether aggressors fell under the Maria da Penha law. A total of 181 issues of a regional newspaper were consulted. Based on content analysis, 164 items addressing violence against women were selected and 46 were included in the corpus of analysis. Results were gathered in three thematic groups: women killed with cruelty, sexual violence against women regardless of age, and violence against women and the limitations of the Maria da Penha law. Violence against these women varied in terms of form and severity, including up to homicide. Women are submitted to sexual violence from childhood through adulthood. The enforcement of this law shows the community it has a means to cope with this social phenomenon.

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Disclosure and Production in Sexual Violence Cases: Situating Stinchcombe

Alberta Law Review ◽

10.29173/alr1359 ◽

1969 ◽

pp. 655

Author(s):

Jennifer Koshan

Keyword(s):

Sexual Violence ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Supreme Court Of Canada ◽

Appellate Courts ◽

Judicial Decisions ◽

Trial Judges ◽

The Supreme Court ◽

History Of ◽

Exercise Of Discretion ◽

Case Basis

This article examines the issue of disclosure and the legacy of Stinchcombe through a review of the history of disclosure and production in criminal sexual assault proceedings and an analysis of judicial decisions and legislative enactments in this context. The author presents a feminist analysis of the tension between those representing the rights of accused persons who seek to access a complainant's personal records and the voices of equality-seeking and anti-violence groups that challenge stereotypes about sexual violence against women. The author presents a comprehensive review of the louver court decisions in production applications since the Supreme Court of Canada decision in R. v. Mills. The author concludes that while Bill C-46 and Mills are positive developments, a great deal of discretion is left to trial judges to decide on the merits of production on a case-by-case basis, and such decisions are granted much deference by appellate courts. The exercise of discretion may encourage the application of stereotypes about women and sexual violence and is the reason an absolute ban on production is preferred by women's and anti- violence groups.

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Community-Based Recovery for Sexual Violence Victims: The Case of Hapsari

AHKAM Jurnal Ilmu Syariah ◽

10.15408/ajis.v20i1.13520 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Atikah Rahmi ◽

Hotma Siregar

Keyword(s):

Sexual Violence ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Community Based ◽

Grassroots Organization ◽

Social Violence ◽

Recovery Mechanism ◽

The North ◽

Women And Children ◽

Sexual Abuse Victims ◽

Community Based Services

Sexual abuse victims experienced physical, psychological, economic and social violence, which lead to trauma. However, there has been no systematic policy to support their recovery. This paper argues for the need for a recovery mechanism system for sexual violence victims, as implemented by Hapsari. This study employs a qualitative approach, with interviews as the means to obtain data. Subjects in this research included women and children in the North Sumatera. This research finds out that community-based recovery has a significant impact on the victims, and is able to empower them to be independent in making a decision and blend with society. As a grassroots organization, Hapsari supports community-based services to reduce violence against women and children, protect victims and gather supports for the sustainability of recovery services. Apart from this, the state should also participate in protecting those people, especially in terms of policy and regulations.

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Physical, sexual and psychological intimate partner violence and non-partner sexual violence against women and girls: a systematic review protocol for producing global, regional and country estimates

BMJ Open ◽

10.1136/bmjopen-2020-045574 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (8) ◽

pp. e045574

Author(s):

Heidi Stöckl ◽

Lynnmarie Sardinha ◽

Mathieu Maheu-Giroux ◽

Sarah R Meyer ◽

Claudia García-Moreno

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Sexual Violence ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Population Based ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Sustainable Development Goal ◽

Development Goal ◽

Women And Girls ◽

Forms Of Violence

IntroductionIn 2013, the WHO published the first global and regional estimates on physical and sexual intimate partner violence (IPV) and non-partner sexual violence (NPSV) based on a systematic review of population-based prevalence studies. In this protocol, we describe a new systematic review for the production of updated estimates for IPV and NPSV for global monitoring of violence against women, including providing the baseline for measuring Sustainable Development Goal to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls.Methods and analysisThe systematic review will update and extend the previous search for population-based surveys (either nationally or subnationally representative) conducted among women aged 15+ years that measured the prevalence of physical, sexual, psychological and physical and/or sexual IPV, NPSV or sexual violence by any perpetrator up to December 2019. Data will be extracted separately for all age groups, setting (urban/rural), partnership status (currently partnered/ever partnered/all women) and recall period (lifetime prevalence/past 12 months). Studies will be identified from electronic searches of online databases of EMBASE, MEDLINE, Global Health and PsycInfo. A search of national statistics office homepages will be conducted for each country to identify reports on population-based, national or subnational studies that include data on IPV or NPSV published outside academic journals. Two reviewers will be involved in quality assessment and data extraction of the review. The review is planned to be updated on a continuous basis. All findings will undergo a country consultation process.Ethics and disseminationFormal ethical approval is not required, as primary data will not be collected. This systematic review will provide a basis and a follow-up tool for global monitoring of the Sustainable Development Goal Target 5.2 on the elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42017054100.

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Marmara University Medical Students’ Perception on Sexual Violence against Women and Induced Abortion in Turkey

Balkan Medical Journal ◽

10.5152/balkanmedj.2015.15230 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 33 (2) ◽

pp. 173-180 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Nimet Emel Luleci ◽

Eda Kaya ◽

Ece Aslan ◽

Ece Soylem Senkal ◽

Zehra Nadide Cicek

Keyword(s):

Medical Students ◽

Sexual Violence ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Induced Abortion

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Utilising the due diligence standard to interrogate Kenya's accountability efforts with regard to survivors of sexual violence in the 2007-2008 post-election violence

African Human Rights Law Journal ◽

10.17159/1996-2096/2021/v21n1a17 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Buluma Bwire ◽

Migai Akech ◽

Agnes Meroka-Mutua

Keyword(s):

Human Rights ◽

Sexual Violence ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Legal Services ◽

Due Diligence ◽

Special Rapporteur ◽

Community Based ◽

Legal Responses ◽

Election Violence ◽

Human Rights Violation

SUMMARY Sexual violence is a human rights violation and is addressed under a growing number of international agreements including the 1993 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, among others. This article uses the due diligence standard, as elaborated on by the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women, to interrogate Kenya's domestic accountability efforts with regard to sexual violence in the 2007/2008 post-election violence. It finds that Kenya suffered from a number of structural and systemic shortcomings that resulted in its failure to meet its obligation to prevent, investigate, prosecute and compensate for such acts of sexual violence perpetrated by both state and non-state actors. Key among them are a lack of well-coordinated multi-sectoral approaches to address sexual violence; human capacity gaps in the provision of medico-legal services to survivors; and systemic failures in the investigation and prosecution of sexual violence cases. The article further highlights the hope for future accountability inherent in the recent ruling in Constitutional Petition 112 of 2013 which held the state accountable for all gaps and shortcomings in responding to sexual violence during the post-election violence. The article concludes by advocating community-based multi-sectoral approaches in prevention and response to sexual violence in the Kenyan context with an emphasis on improving both human and technical capacities for provision of medico-legal services to survivors. Key words: sexual violence; human rights; Kenya 2007-2008 postelection violence; medico-legal responses to sexual violence

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Telling stories of rape, revenge and redemption in the age of the TED talk

Crime Media Culture An International Journal ◽

10.1177/1741659018771117 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 15 (2) ◽

pp. 259-278 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Karen Crawley ◽

Olivera Simic

Keyword(s):

Sexual Violence ◽

Violence Against Women ◽

Public Institutions ◽

Entertainment Media ◽

Mainstream Media ◽

Informal Justice ◽

The Third ◽

History Of ◽

The Spectator ◽

Men’S Involvement

The last few years have witnessed increasing discussion of sexual violence in the mainstream media and public debate in North America and elsewhere, especially with the most recent wave of sexual assault and harassment allegations in entertainment, media and public institutions, called the #MeToo campaign. Despite the view that men must be engaged in this conversation in order to be effective at preventing violence and changing deep-seated patriarchal attitudes, the place of male voices in this ongoing conversation is hotly in question. This article analyzes an unusual and controversial project by Thordis Elva and Tom Stranger, who, 20 years after Stranger raped Elva, produced a TED talk (2016) watched by over 3 million people, and a jointly written book, South of Forgiveness (Elva and Stranger, 2017), detailing their story of forgiveness and redemption. The first part of this article situates this unprecedented victim-rapist enterprise within the history of feminist anti-rape politics and men’s involvement in that politics, arguing that this project both instantiates, and critiques, an appeal to the ‘good man’. The second part analyzes the book South of Forgiveness as a survivor story that is more complex than the highly reductive format of a TED talk allows, and shows how its uneasy fit within the putative frameworks of ‘restorative’ or informal justice (as Elva and others claim it to be) is a function of the unacknowledged dimension to the performance in the form of revenge. The third part of the article turns to Elva’s and Stranger’s public performances that began with the TED talk and book tour, which we attended, to show how this function of revenge played out theatrically and implicates the spectator as bystander and witness. We conclude by reflecting upon the implications of listening to male perpetrators speak against sexual violence against women and our responsibility towards these questions as feminist legal academics.

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