We mainly hear about sexual violence against women, but we should keep in mind that men also suffer from it.
1 in 3 victims of domestic violence are men, according to Australian government. 1 in 4 men, that is 28.5%, in the United States have experienced rape, physical violence and/or stalking by a close partner in their lifetime (www.thehotline.org).
These statistics, even not as high as for women, have to be taken into account when implementing laws around the world to protect people from domestic violence. In fact, fighting for gender equality requires gender neutrality to give equal opportunities and avoid gender-based discrimination.
It is hardly believed that male could be victims of intimate violence.
If we take the example of Bangladesh, women are more likely to be victims of domestic violence but there is an increasing number of men requiring gender neutral laws. As in Bangladesh, it is mostly not believed that men could suffer from female violence, both mentally and physically, male victims cannot find any help. Bangladesh Men’s Rights Foundation was created in 2016 and fights to raise awareness around men's domestic violence.
The issue is a widely spread issue and is not an isolated event from Bangladesh. In fact, in Mexico around 25% of domestic violence are reported to be against men. The worrying aspect is that men cannot ask for help in most cases. Things are changing and helplines available to men are emerging around the world but in countries like Bangladesh, Kenya, Ghana it is still hard for men to find help.
The ultimate solution to this issue would be to draft legislation as more gender-neutral oriented. However, as we are not the one deciding for this aspect, raising awareness is an important part of fighting against any kind of human sexual abuse, violence. If legislations cannot be that easily changed, helplines should at least be gender neutral and willing to help anyone regardless of their gender.
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