Tip of iceberg: Study finds 37% of HK female respondents experience sexual violence, 26% under intimate partner violence

Hong Kong Women's Coalition on Equal Opportunities, Zonta Club of Kowloon, Department of Sociology and Social Policy of Lingnan University (the initiating organizations) launched a study on women's experiences of violence last year, with a quantitative and qualitative study conducted by Professor Annie Chan to collect the experiences of 1,044 women who have experienced sexual and intimate partner violence, and to analyze their reactions, feelings and impact when faced with violence. In response to the International Women's Day initiative to raise awareness of violence against women, the founding organizations held a press conference on Monday (Mar. 7) to release the data analysis of the study through a ZOOM meeting.

The same study had previously been conducted and published in 2013, and compared to the results of 2013, it was found that women were exposed to sexual and intimate partner violence with equivalent severity, and the increased forms and avenues of violence were found to compound in women feelings of helplessness, as well as greater mental and emotional stress.

Sexual violence and intimate partner violence remain serious problems

The initiating organizations and researchers focused on the experiences of sexual and intimate partner violence among women aged 15-64 in Hong Kong. 1,044 questionnaires and 30 in-depth interviews were collected. Analysis of the data showed that 37.54% of the respondents had experienced sexual violence and 26.37% had experienced intimate partner violence.

About 20% of the respondents who experienced sexual violence were subjected to "the making of sexually explicit remarks that are upsetting/embarrassing" (28.91%) and "non-penetrative sexual assault" (28.91%), while more than 10% of the respondents were subjected to "unwanted sexual attention" (17.97%), or "penetrative sexual assault" (16.34%). More than 90% of the perpetrators were men (92.49%), and more than 60% of the perpetrators were people known to the victims, including former partners (11.11%), friends (9.38%), family members or other relatives (8.15%). More than 20% of the respondents were affected by sexual violence in their home environment, more than 10% suffered sexual violence or were assaulted on transportation vehicles or at school, and about 5% reported that incidences occurred in virtual spaces (i.e., online forums, social media, and communication software). More than 70% of respondents did not know how to respond (75%), and although more than 60% had sought help, the majority would only seek help from family and friends, and 40% would end up not seeking help from anyone.

Among the respondents who experienced intimate partner violence, more than 30% were most often "sexually abused or forced to have sex" (35.52%), while the rest were more often subject to "verbal abuse or intimidation" (22.01%) and "physical violence" (14.29%). As for the abusers, about 90% were male, more than 60% were former partners (63.77%), while the rest were current and former legal spouses (12.32% and 11.59% respectively). More than 40% of the cases occurred in the victim's or abuser's home, and most of the respondents felt helpless about intimate partner violence. More than 60% of the victims could not respond immediately, while only 51% of the respondents would seek help, and only 10% would choose to separate or divorce, while a significant percentage of the victims had sought help from psychologists or psychiatrists (9.09%).

The above figures reflect that sexual and intimate partner violence against women remains a very serious problem, and there are many forms of violence other than physical violence that exploit women mentally and emotionally.

The numbers of women seeking help require improvement

The above data shows that only over 40% of the respondents are willing to seek help, and only about 10% of them are willing to seek help from professionals, due to feelings of shame, fear of being blamed by others, and the impact on other relationships. There are still many barriers to seeking help, such as shame from conservative social norms, misconceptions about violence against women, and even more because existing laws and policy support are not effective in combating violence against women.

Women are more traumatized by mixed forms of violence

Researchers found from in-depth interviews that women who experience intimate partner violence tend to suffer more types of violence, such as intimate sexual assault, sexual humiliation, emotional violence, verbal intimidation, being cut off financially or socially, non-contact physical violence, etc., generating more types of harm for such women and severely impacting their mental health and feelings of helplessness in such situations.