A public opinion survey conducted in Montenegro showed that 85 percent of respondents recognize that psychological violence against women and girls is very common or occurs at least in individual cases, the OSCE Mission in Montenegro announced.
A third of respondents, as they state, have personally experienced at least one form of psychological violence, and more than 44,1 percent of respondents believe that it is the most common form of violence in emotional and family relationships.
These are, as announced, some of the key findings from the Research on Attitudes and Perceptions of Psychological Violence towards Women and Girls in Family and Partner Relationships, presented today in Podgorica. The survey was commissioned by the OSCE Mission in Montenegro for the needs of the NGO Safe House, and was conducted by the DeFacto Agency from May to July on a representative sample of 1.008 citizens over the age of 18.
Although this research, as announced, is not a classic victimological research in its scope, it provided important findings not only about how citizens of Montenegro experience psychological violence, but also about its prevalence.
"The research revealed worrying findings. The data, crossed with demographic variables, revealed that a woman's likelihood of experiencing psychological violence remained the same regardless of her age, education or employment status, or whether she lived in an urban or rural area. In other words, every woman can be subjected to psychological violence," said Olivera Komar from the DeFacto agency.
After the presentation, the head of the Mission, Dominik Vag, emphasized that psychological violence against women and girls is a social and public health problem, with serious consequences not only for the well-being of the victims, but also for their children and society as a whole. "Mental violence often precedes physical violence. The report sheds light on this social issue and its serious consequences, it can contribute to its early identification in society and support the reporting and processing of complaints," said Ambassador Vag.
The executive director of the NGO Safe Women's House, Budislavka Saveljić, highlighted the worrying finding that as many as one third of the surveyed citizens believe that women and girls make false claims about psychological violence just to draw attention to themselves. "Further worrying is that nearly a fifth believe a man has the right to tell a woman/girlfriend to shut up if she's annoying him. Therefore, it is not surprising that more than half of the surveyed women and girls who experienced some form of psychological violence did not report it to anyone, and almost one third turned only to family and friends," said Saveljić.
Building on the research presented today, the Mission will support a campaign that Safe Women's House will launch on social media on 17 November to increase public awareness of psychological violence, the daily experience of those who live with it and the tactics used by perpetrators to threaten and commit control.
The OSCE Mission said that, within the framework of supporting human rights in Montenegro, they remain committed to supporting institutions, non-governmental organizations and citizens to eliminate all forms of violence against women and ensure zero tolerance towards it.
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