Approximately 1 out of 5 women in Albania are physically or sexually harassed by their partner, while 2 out of 3 report experiencing psychological harassment.
The worrying figures presented on Euronews Albania’s “Me Pak Fjalë” indicate that violence against women is widespread in Albania.
According to a 2019 OSCE report, nearly 170,000 women have experienced physical or sexual abuse at least once in their lifetime from a partner, be that their husband or a boyfriend.
While 120,000 reported being victims of physical violence or sexual harassment by persons who were not their partners, at least once.
Psychological violence, which includes verbal abuse, controlling behavior, limitation of personal freedom, and threats, are among the most common abuses listed by women.
Circa 50% report that they’ve had controlling partners, 22% reported economic violence and 11% said they were blackmailed.
1 in 3 women in Albania said they were sexually molested, while 13% reported they had been followed by partners.
In 2019, over 20% involved murders within the family, and more than 90% of the victims were women.
A majority of women do not even report the violence to the police, while even the cases reported rarely get a punishment in court.
Around 46% have adequate information on what to do if they experience violence, according to the OSCE study, while 28% have only “limited information”.
In the last few years, domestic violence has skyrocketed, from 2.000 in 2010 to nearly 5.000 in 2018, similarly restraining orders have almost doubled.
However, this does not necessarily translate into more violence occurring within Albanian households as explained by Prof. Dr. Edlira Haxhiymeri, among the first to raise the voice on violence against women.
“The percentage of girls and women denouncing violence has increased, and this indicates an increased level of awareness”, she said.
Nevertheless, around 25% of these cases end up in court, while 75% are sentenced.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
