Security: 35% more gender-based violence in 4 years, but awareness is growing among young people

In Italy, gender-based aggression and violence have increased by 35% in four years. This is a worrying figure, even more so if we consider that most of these episodes involve the youngest segments of the population, with a peak of 27% among underage victims. Analysing the contours of this phenomenon is the report 'Young people and gender violence. From data analysis to the perception of the phenomenon by the younger generations' presented this morning at the Central Directorate of the Criminal Police of the Department of Public Security.

The study shows how the incidence of women out of the total number of victims remained almost constant over the four-year period, at around 75% for persecutory acts, 81% for ill-treatment against family members and cohabitees, and with values ranging around 92% for sexual violence. Another aspect on which the police researchers focused is that of partner possessiveness, with 33% of the students declaring that they are subjected to possessive attitudes by their partners: among these, 66% of the girls are pressurised by their partners not to wear certain items of clothing.

With regard to the perception of safety, understood in its broadest sense, the fear of being a victim of gender-based violence is higher among female students (57%) than among male students (10%) and the results returned by the online consultation also show a higher fear for one's own safety among girls (35%) than among boys (11%). "The perception of gender-based violence is perceived more by girls than by boys, and it is more girls than boys who feel the need to adopt protective behaviour," said the Guarantor Authority for Childhood and Adolescence, Carla Garlatti, participating in the meeting to present the report. "Only 15 per cent denounce," she added, "but in my opinion this figure should absolutely not be read as a lack of confidence in the police as much as, I fear, as a lack of perception on the part of the victim of being a victim.

Presenting the data of the report this morning at the Central Directorate of the Criminal Police of the Department of Public Security in Rome were the deputy chief of police, Raffaele Grassi, the senior manager of the State Police Directorate of the Criminal Analysis Service Stefano Delfini, and the students of the Consulta and the schools of Rome. "From the data emerges a great awareness on the part of young people who feel the need to talk about it, to have our experts in the schools to talk about it in a very sincere manner. Some of them have been victims of toxic relationships and are asking for useful knowledge tools'. For Grassi, 'children must be educated in the use of social media, where there are undoubtedly few paths to legality. The press,' he said, 'has a decisive role in supporting the police. Communicating means prevention. Communicating means helping and supporting'.