Three-quarters of domestic violence victims in Cyprus are women, with police recording complaints from 2,614 female victims in 2022, the ombudswoman said on Monday to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.
During the same period, 57 rape complaints were filed, according to the latest European Institute for Gender Equality data for 2023-2024, Commissioner for Administration and Human Rights Protection Maria Lottides said.
Lottides said her office continues to intervene through examining complaints relating to both sexual harassment at work and state authorities’ response to incidents of gender-based violence.
The office also conducts extensive training for interested parties on these issues and intervenes, even on its own initiative, to condemn instances of sexist speech in public discourse, including by participating in parliamentary discussions, she said.
Data at local and European level show without doubt that eliminating gender-based violence continues to require consistent, determined and collective action, Lottides said.
The ombudswoman said her office launched an awareness campaign on Monday with a poster aimed at alerting victims and supporting complaints, placing women at the centre and as the driving force for every conviction as the only path to eliminating violence against women.
(information from CNA)
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