Help for Battered Women

Machismo—A Global Problem

Latin America has given the word "machismo" to the English-speaking world. It refers to aggressive masculine pride and implies an abusive attitude toward women. But machismo is by no means confined to Latin America, as the following reports indicate.

Egypt: A three-month study in Alexandria indicated that domestic violence is the principal cause of injuries to women. It is the cause of 27.9 percent of all visits by women to local trauma services.—Résumé 5 of the Fourth World Conference on Women.

Thailand: In Bangkok's largest suburb, 50 percent of married women are beaten regularly.—Pacific Institute for Women's Health.

Hong Kong: "The number of women who say they have been beaten by their partners has soared by more than 40 per cent in the past year."—South China Morning Post, July 21, 2000.

Japan: The number of women seeking shelter rose from 4,843 in 1995 to 6,340 in 1998. "About one-third said they were seeking shelter because of violent behavior by their husbands."—The Japan Times, September 10, 2000.

Britain: "A rape, beating or stabbing occurs in a home somewhere across Britain every six seconds." According to a Scotland Yard report, "police receive 1,300 calls from victims of domestic violence every day—more than 570,000 a year. Eighty-one per cent are female victims attacked by males."—The Times, October 25, 2000.

Peru: Seventy percent of all crimes reported to police involve women beaten by their husbands.—Pacific Institute for Women's Health.

Russia: "In one year, 14,500 Russian women were killed by their husbands, and a further 56,400 were disabled or badly injured in domestic attacks."—The Guardian.

China: "It is a new problem. It's rapidly increasing, especially in urban areas," says Professor Chen Yiyun, director of the Jinglun Family Center. "Pressure from neighbours no longer checks domestic violence."—The Guardian.

Nicaragua: "Violence against women in Nicaragua is soaring. One survey claimed that last year alone 52 per cent of Nicaraguan women suffered some form of domestic violence at the hands of their men."—BBC News.

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