Domestic violence – is it only women spouses who are victims?

The straight answer to this question is … “no”.

Evidence exists which demonstrates that there is a distinct lack of support for male victims of intimate partner violence (IPV), and evidence is mounting now that the stigma of “shame” is evaporating leading to more men reporting assaults. The weight of that evidence has given rise to scandal across the developed world, coupled with the withdrawal, by radical feminist organisations, including some well-known charities in the UK, of virtually all public funding to support IPV victims.  There has been a gradual, but definite, withdrawal of public funding building up over the last 30+ years.

Whilst it is comforting to know that there are in excess of 4,000 safe havens in the UK for female victims to retreat to, it is alarming to know that there are just 11 for heterosexual men.

Martin Fiebert is a psychologist, practicing as a psychology professor at California State University in Long Beach. He has carried out research virtually worldwide to examine assaults by women on their spouses or male partners.  His research established that women are as physically aggressive, if not more so, as men within their relationships with their spouses or opposite-sex partners.  The sample size of victims in that study exceeded 440,850 people.

The research shows that more refuges for male victims should be made available, without minimising the importance of the existence of refuges for women.

Carol Robinson is a solicitor in the Family department at Barker Gotelee Solicitors.

Ipswich Family Solicitors – for more information on our range of legal services, please call the team on 01473 611211 or email [email protected]