Argentina: Report raises alarm over violence against women

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina – A newly released index on gender violence in Argentina shows that women suffer an alarmingly high amount of physical and psychological abuse.

The first national index on male-chauvinistic gender violence was released Friday to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.

The online poll surveyed 59,380 women between June 3 and Sept. 3. It was carried out by women’s groups under the “Ni Una Menos,” meaning “Not One Less,” initiative that has organized massive protests against gender violence.

The index said that all women surveyed feared walking in the streets at some point, 99 per cent suffered physical or psychological violence with some of their partners and nearly all were once harassed on the street or in private. It also showed that 79 per cent of the women were once touched without their consent while using public transportation and 76 per cent felt their opinion was disqualified for being a woman.

President Mauricio Macri met with victims of gender violence Friday in the presidential residence on the outskirts of Buenos Aires. He later published a video on his Twitter account to raise awareness about the issue and encourage people to dial an emergency number and help protect women against violence.

Hundreds of people led by unions marched in front of the presidential palace in Buenos Aires on Friday to demand more policies to combat gender violence.

A recent report by the United Nations Special Rapporteur of Violence Against Women says that Argentina still has considerable deficiencies when it comes to preventing violence against women. After her visit to Argentina, Dubravka Simonovic also said that the country needs to implement more international norms to assist victims and create more shelters for women.

A woman is killed every 37 hours in Argentina, according to official numbers.

In the past two years, tens of thousands of people have marched in Buenos Aires and other Latin American capitals to condemn violence against women. The latest demonstration came last month following the brutal killing of a 16-year-old girl who was drugged, raped and tortured.