(c) 2010 Tagesanzeiger
Current figures show: One in five victims of domestic violence is a man. The offenses range from simple bodily harm to attempted murder
Men are far more likely to be victims of violent women in marriages and relationships than previously thought. The Federal Statistical Office received and evaluated the figures from the cantonal police corps for the first time in 2009. The newspaper “Der Sonntag” has the data. Accordingly, the following crimes occurred “in the context of relationships or former partnerships” last year:
- Intentional killing or attempted killing : 49 cases have been registered across Switzerland. A man was the victim 15 times - in almost every third crime.
- Serious bodily harm : 39 attacks are recorded in the police statistics. In 8 cases a man was the victim. Men make up a fifth of the victims.
- Simple assault : 1,840 attacks occurred in a relationship. A man was affected 309 times. Every sixth victim is male.
- Assaults (e.g. slaps): A total of 3,987 assaults occurred in relationships. 759 victims were men. One in five assaults was committed against a man.
All in all, the statistics on relationship crimes show that 20 percent of victims of violence against life and limb in Switzerland are men. And it could be even more. “The police statistics only record official cases. The actual proportion, taking into account the number of unreported cases, is much higher," says Oliver Hunziker, President of the Association of Responsible Fathers and Mothers (VeV).
Cortesi: “Women are more willing to commit violence”
There are no comparable figures to previous years, but according to “Sonntag” the numbers are increasing. The Zurich cantonal police are registering an increase: “We are noticing that women’s willingness to use violence has increased. Women are more willing to commit acts,” says press director Mario Cortesi. In its report on violence, the Berne Commission for Gender Equality came to the conclusion: “The current situation of male victims is similar to that of raped and abused women thirty years ago. At that time they had to fight against denial of the problem and against ignorance."
The reasons for female aggressiveness are little researched. «The domestic power balance has shifted: men and women are approaching a power symmetry. This makes conflicts increasingly precarious and ultimately hopeless because no one feels understood,” says couples therapist Klaus Heer. Today, men often feel at least as weak as their partners in everyday relationships: “Women react more and more in the same way as men: the more helpless they are in the event of a conflict, the more prone they are to physical violence.”
There have been two contact points for a year now: in Erlenbach ZH the men's house initiated by a pastor and in Aargau the VeV fathers' house. Demand is high: both houses are well utilized.