Cases of sexist violence increase by 16.5% in the Canary Islands in the third quarter of 2023

The increase in sexist crime in the Canary Islands is higher than that recorded in the entire national territory, with an increase in complaints of 8.1%

EFE

December 15 2023 (14:04 WET)
Updated in December 16 2023 (08:53 WET)
Gender Violence (Photo: Pexels)
Gender Violence (Photo: Pexels)

In the third quarter of 2023, cases of sexist violence grew by 16.5%. The courts registered 545 requests for protection orders, of which 425 were admitted, which represents a rate of 25.2 women victims of gender violence per 10,000, the fourth highest in all of Spain.

According to data from the Observatory against Domestic and Gender Violence of the General Council of the Judiciary released this Friday, in the summer of last year the courts of the islands had registered 2,562 complaints of sexist violence, while in this year the number was 2,985 (423 more).

The increase in sexist crime in the Canary Islands is higher than that recorded in the entire national territory, where the number of complaints increased by 8.1% in the comparison between the third quarter of 2022 and that of 2023.

According to the report of the governing body of the judges, the number of women victims of gender violence in the Canary Islands also increased between July and September of this year compared to the same period of 2022. It went from 2,544 to 2,985, 441 more, a percentage increase of 17.3%.

The Observatory report offers more data: of the 2,985 women victims of violence in the Canary Islands in the study period, 2,301 were Spanish (five of them minors) and 684 were foreign.

Thus, 345 of the victims availed themselves during the processing of the process to the dispensation to the obligation to testify against their alleged aggressor, 11.7% more than in the third quarter of the previous year, when 309 women had not confirmed the complaints.

During last summer, the Canarian judicial bodies that judged cases of gender violence issued 822 convictions (20.2% more than in the third quarter of 2022), 32 acquittals (34.7% less than in the previous year), 166 free dismissal orders (plus 52.3%) and 1,031 provisional dismissal orders of the proceedings (plus 17.4%).

The percentage of convictions was 96.3% (plus 3.1%) and that of termination by provisional dismissal, 86.1% (3.2% less than in the previous year).

Regarding men prosecuted, last summer 854 sat on the bench in the Canary Islands for sexist crimes, 16.3% more than in the third quarter of 2022, with 96.3% being convicted (3.1% more than in 2022).

Of the total prosecuted, 606 were Spanish citizens and 216 were foreigners. As for protection orders, the Canarian courts registered 545 requests this summer, 31.3% more than in 2022. Of these, the courts rejected seven, adopted 425 (50.2% more than in 2022) and denied 113 (-14.4%).

Data by islands

The Observatory study offers for the fourth year data broken down by islands. In Lanzarote, between April and June 2023, 141 complaints of crimes of violence against women were registered. In the other islands, in Fuerteventura 231 complaints of crimes of violence against women were registered; in Gran Canaria, 1,314 (one of them alleged homicide); in Lanzarote, 141; in El Hierro, 5; in La Gomera, 16; in La Palma 61, and in Tenerife, 1,453, one of them, alleged homicide. In the vast majority of cases, crimes of injury and mistreatment were reported.

Nationally, the number of women victims of gender violence and the number of complaints filed in the courts and before the security forces and bodies increased again in the third quarter of the year, exceeding the barrier of 50,000.

In the months of July, August and September, a total of 53,480 complaints were registered throughout the State (8% more than in the same period of the previous year) and 52,545 women victims (9.57% more).

The Observatory highlights the response given by the Spanish courts, which issued 9,754 protection orders, seven out of ten requested and 17% more than a year ago.

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