Home Is a Dangerous Place to a Woman
	- About domestic violence - For men using violence - A Finnish women's rights group - About International Women's Day

Home Is a Dangerous Place to a Woman

A Kurdish father's shooting his "disobedient" daughter to death in Uppsala, Sweden, has also shocked Finns. The act has been looked upon as a relic of the honorary conceptions of the Old World and even the absurdity of the Islamic way of thinking.

Such a thing could never happen here in our nearly model country of equality. Not among the Finnish-born Lutheran people, no. Or could it

Crimes

In Finland, one woman in every two weeks dies as a victim of domestic violence.

90,000 women a year are subjected to violence in their closest relationships.

Every fifth woman lives in a relationship where she has been either physically or sexually abused or threatened with violence.

Of the estimated 10,000 rapes every year, only 500 become known to the police. Most rapes take place indoors, and the rapist and the victim know each other.

More than half of the women over 15 have been molested or sexually harassed.

66 percent of women are anxious about their safety.

Home is a dangerous place to a woman.

- and Punishments

The Act of Equality between Women and Men came into force in Finland in 1987. It can prevent discrimination, but it does not protect against violence in close relationships.

Since 1995, an assault taking place in a private place has also been an indictable offence that can be reported irrespective of whether the victim wishes it to be. On the other hand, only about every fourth assault investigated by the police and merely half of the cases which reach a prosecutor actually come up before the court. The indictment can be dismissed e.g. if the plaintiff asks so of his or her own free will. It is regrettable how often the “free will” lies in the hands of the assaulter, thus indicating the will of the assaulter and not the victim.

Marital rape was criminalized in 1994. However, it is still an offence, the prosecution of which rests with the plaintiff.

The Act on the Restraining Order entered into force in 2000. A person feeling him/herself threatened can apply for a restraining order. Also a prosecuting, police, or social service authority may apply for the order. Restraining orders are issued by the District Courts for one year at a time.

Legislation which outlaws assaulting women is an important way of re-defining the limits of appropriate/inappropriate behaviour.

Laws that become dead letters, though, do not promote justice.

It Gets Expensive

Violence against women cost Finnish society directly and indirectly nearly 900 million marks (about 151 million euros) in 1998. Of the direct costs, the share of the judicial system, the police and the prison service was 158 million, the social services 88 million and the health services 20 million marks.

What is it?

The United Nation's Fourth World Conference on Women was held in Beijing in 1995. The Conference's report says: ” Violence against women is an obstacle to the achievement of the objectives of equality, development and peace.Violence against women both violates and impairs or nullifies the enjoyment by women of their human rights and fundamental freedoms.”

Violence in close relationships is not a private matter. It concerns both the society and human rights, it does not realize equality and it is a crime – even when it is not perceived to be one by the assaulter or the victim.

There Is Something Not Quite Right in His Head

Violence by an intimate partner occurs in all social classes and occupational categories and on all educational levels. Violence is an effective means of achieving and maintaining power and control.

A violent man is extremely dependent on the woman and aims at controlling her with fear. He sees the woman as his personal property and as the satisfier of his needs whose human rights need not be respected. As an ”object possessed”, the woman is the source of the man's personal comfort and is responsible for it. That is why her life, thoughts and feelings must be constantly controlled by any means available.

It is without doubt important to study the reasons for a Finnish man to so easily swing his first or grab a knife or a gun in order to hurt his woman.

The most important thing, however, is to put an end to the violence.

What Can Be Done?

Helena Koski, the author of a book dealing with domestic violence "Ulos ansasta", writes that the amount of non-violence and equality education must be considerably increased. Absolutely no violence or bullying should be allowed in child health centres, day-care centres, schools or at home. A non-violent and equal way of thinking can be taught in confirmation classes and in connection with parish youth work. The army is an ideal place to talk about relationship violence.

"The non-violent option is to act non-violently. It means co-operation instead of competition. It means respect instead of subjugation. It means equality, not supremacy of the other. It means discussion instead of talking alone. It means interaction – not ruling or domineering. It means love instead of fear, hatred and contempt. Men are responsible for their own violent behaviour and desire to domineer." (Per Isdal)