The MIPROF Letter: Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Violence in France in 2022

On March 5, 2024, the Interministerial Mission for the Protection of Women against Violence and the Fight against Human Trafficking (Miprof) published the "Letter of the National Observatory on Violence against Women," which analyzes available data in France on intimate partner violence and sexual violence for the year 2022. The data from this survey provide valuable insights into the perceptions of individuals who are victims of violence within their relationships and those who are victims of sexist and/or sexual violence across all spheres of society.

Key figures on intimate partner violence and sexual violence in France in 2022

• 118 women were killed by their (ex-)partner, meaning one femicide was committed every 3 days.
• 321,000 adult women reported being victims of physical, sexual, and/or psychological or verbal violence by their (ex-)partner, and 217,000 reported being victims of rape, attempted rape, and/or sexual assault.
• 1 in 3 victims of sexual harassment reported that it involved cyber violence.
• 1 in 5 victims of intimate partner violence took no action to report the violence (such as confiding in someone, seeking help from a psychologist, calling a helpline, or filing a complaint).
• The number of calls made to the “3919 – Violence Against Women Info” hotline doubled between 2020 and 2022.
• 87,000 victims, both minors and adults, of sexual violence were recorded by police and gendarmerie services.
• 10,000 accommodation and emergency housing places are dedicated to women victims of violence.

Characteristics of intimate partner violence

• Femicides or homicides occur within a context of previous violence.
• Violence within intimate relationships is characterized by the accumulation of different forms of violence and the repetition of violent acts, often leading the victim to contemplate suicide.
• Most of the time, women who experience direct violence have at least one child in their care (8 out of 10 cases).

Characteristics of sexual violence

• Most sexual violence is perpetrated by men against women (9 out of 10 cases).
• Half of sexual violence victims are minors.

The judicial handling of violence cases

• Complaints filed by women who are victims of domestic violence with law enforcement have experienced a slight increase (+14% between 2021 and 2022).
• There has been an increase in the number of “Grave Danger Phones” (+30% between 2022 and 2023) and anti-approach bracelets (+36% between 2022 and 2023) across the territory.
• The number of protection orders granted in cases of domestic violence has slightly decreased (from 5873 in 2021 to 5792 in 2022).
• Nearly half of those charged with intimate partner violence have prior criminal records.
• Most sentences handed down for sexual violence result in imprisonment (9 out of 10 cases).
• Since April 12, 2022, the “femicide protocol” allows for emergency care in specialized hospital settings for children present during a femicide or the homicide of one of their parents by their (ex-)partner.

Découvrir l’intégralité de la lettre de la MIPROF (french only)