Non-marital domestic violence is on the increase, warns the Ministry of the Interior

The study also reveals an increase in sexual violence against minors.

An increase in sexual violence

After a 2020 marked by the fight against Covid-19, the 2021 data continue the same increase in the number of victims reported since 2016, with a particularly marked increase in sexual violence (+26%).

In total, the police and gendarmerie services recorded 64,300 victims of non-marital intra-family violence, of which 47,900 for physical violence (+13%) and 16,400 for sexual violence.

4 out of 5 victims are minors

In almost half of the cases the facts suffered are prior to the year of registration. The study thus reveals that the average delay in filing a complaint reaches 7 years for intra-family sexual violence.

The figures also show that, all forms of violence combined, 80% of victims were minors at the time of the events (96% for sexual violence and 75% for physical violence) and more than half, 59%, are women (79% for sexual assault and 52% for physical violence).

Figures that do not reflect reality

However, these results are not representative and underestimate the extent of this violence. In fact, as the Genesis victimization survey found in 2020, only a third of the main victims of non-marital intra-family violence declared the facts suffered to the police or gendarmerie. If the release of the speech has allowed some victims to come out, there is still a long way to go.

Finally, the Ministry of the Interior notes that in 2021, 38,100 people have been implicated for physical violence within the non-marital family sphere e 11,000 for sexual assault in the same frame. Unsurprisingly, three-quarters are men (70% for physical violence and 94% for sexual violence).