51% 16yos in NI believe VAWG is common there.

[NitroNine]

The NI Executive Office Report Ending Violence Against Women and Girls: Experiences and Attitudes of 16 year olds in Northern Ireland in 2023 was published today. Unfortunately those 16yos are right; but if admitting you’ve a problem is the first step; perhaps this is hopeful?

If you’ve not time for the full report, the trusty BelTel has covered it; if you want ALL THE STATISTICS to pore over like a wee mathsy Golem, the data tables are available.

The data is extracted from another survey, which was completed by 36.7% of 16yos in NI (2,065 people). This survey could be considered to have been completed by just under half that number, so still a significant sample.

'a wee mathsy Golem'

Wonderful image.

Thanks, OP.

This will never end or get better when we just keep looking at the victims.

We need to look at the people who do the crime. And it's men.

For murder we have data on why and how and who. On violence against women all we know is it affects women.

Some wee thoughts off the top of my head:

Sexism and violent attitudes are more common than they should be in NI - I’m not surprised they end up combining. I don’t know if it’s a legacy of The Troubles combining with a patriarchal culture or it’s just a patriarchal culture.

Some examples from my own life: NI allowed corporal punishment in schools until the late-80s. I’ve experienced this myself (corporal punishment at home and male teachers were allowed to hit female students in my school). I’ve had to call RUC/PSNI on male neighbours beating their female partners. The men’s justification is always, 'She gives as good as she gets', by which they mean she argues with him so he hits her. These men equate the two 🤬

I remember with great anger how male politicians treated NIWC (and other female) politicians in Stormont. To be honest, Michelle O’Neill and Arlene Foster have received shabby, sexist treatment from male politicians here too (and the media).

Women’s needs are seen as trivial compared to ethno-nationalist politics - who cares if women and children suffer, we have to fight about flags. 🤬

https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/the-marginalisation-of-womens-rights-in-northern-ireland-20-years-after-the-good-friday-agreement/

You’re absolutely right @UtopiaPlanitia - I love NI (& Down South) so it’s not meant as an attack on the place; & I think you’re right in identifying the Troubles as a contributing factor - for multiple reasons.

Obviously it’s easier to batter one of them’uns senseless/rape & murder them if you adhere to a certain a mindset. Or not intervene in a mixed neighbourhood “because them’uns are like that”.

Trauma, PTSD & intergenerational trauma can build/worsen cultures of VAWG.

We’ve seen such a horrific number of stories come out about the Orange Order actively seeking to protect members who are paedophiles; who are domestic abusers; & who think [Catholic] women being murdered is something to (literally) sing about - & everyone knows that even now the PSNI is crammed with Order &/or band Members. So go to the police about DV or rape? Heads you’re a Taig getting what you deserve; & tails they support [someone they see as] their pal over a troublemaking woman.

Everything subordinated to the flags 🤦‍♀️

Exactly @OneMorePlant why is the perpetrator missing from the VAWAG? We have to identify the cause, and talk about it, before we deal with it. Mind you, they've been very good dealing with climate change at the COP summits without mentioning fossil fuels for 26 years .. oh, wait, we're failing at that. I see your point

For murder we have data on why and how and who. On violence against women all we know is it affects women.

As a contribution, it might be helpful to know how much of a drug problem there is in NI and its association with VAWG. This is about DA although I'd think there are substantial overlaps.

A number of police forces have been drug testing individuals arrested for domestic abuse offences as part of a pilot to establish perpetrator profiles and offender rehabilitation opportunities to protect victims.
Anecdotally, the use of cocaine and alcohol have been highlighted as exacerbating factors in domestic abuse offences, and the results from pilots in seven police forces have demonstrated significant evidence to support this. In one area, nearly 85 per cent (127/150) of domestic abuse offenders arrested and drug tested, were positive for cocaine and/or opiates and overall across the pilot forces, 59 per cent of those tested were positive for cocaine and/or opiates.
…
Farah Nazeer is Chief Executive of Women’s Aid. She said:

“Domestic abuse is driven by the perpetrator’s desire for power and control, as well as by the inequality between men and women, and it is important to remember that drugs, including cocaine, do not cause domestic abuse.

“However, as demonstrated by this study, there is a link between domestic abuse and drug use, which can make pre-existing violence and abuse more severe. This study highlights that we need to understand how other forms of harm, such as drugs, interlink with domestic abuse - and how this can help improve protection and support for survivors.”

https://news.npcc.police.uk/releases/police-pilots-find-high-levels-of-drug-use-in-domestic-abuse-offenders

It's an interesting demographic and one well worth listening to because many 16yos are living with domestic violence, even if they are not the primary target.

@RethinkingLife in brief, a big one - the Department of Health website has huge amounts of information on it. A significant portion of the drugs trade in NI is controlled by paramilitary organisations - approx 32% of OCGs in NI have paramilitary links; & many OCGs aren’t involved in drug dealing - too, which adds an additional layer of complexity to the issue. (The 32% figure comes from the Organised Crime Task Force’s Organised Crime Strategy: Northern Ireland 2021-2024, last updated in 2022.)

@TooBigForMyBoots they’re at the developmental stage of feeling able to form & express opinions that conflict with the adults in their lives; & the vast majority will have absorbed - to some degree or another - sociocultural norms from outwith NI &/or their own backgrounds thanks to Instagram &, far more so, TikTok. As you say, a really interesting demographic. (And sadly you are of course right re: experiences DV.)