NSO Malta | Il-Vjolenza Domestika: 2023

Punti ewlenin
Aħbarijiet
Tabelli
Mapep
Metodoloġija
Viżwalizzazzjonijiet
PDF

Il-Vjolenza Domestika: 2023

NR232/2024

Release Date: 04 December 2024

Fl-2023, 3,589 persuna rrapportaw jew użaw is-servizzi disponibbli għal dawk mġarrbin mill-vjolenza domestika.
In-nisa kienu jammontaw għal 75.4 fil-mija tal-persuni li għamlu użu mis-servizzi ta’ vjolenza domestika.
Matul l-2023, 390 persuna użaw is-servizzi li hemm għall-aggressuri – 90.3 fil-mija kienu rġiel.

Il-Vjolenza Domestika: 2023

NR232/2024

Release Date: 04 December 2024

In 2023, 3,589 persons reported experiencing domestic violence or made use of services available within this area. Of these, 75.4 per cent were females.

Fl-2023, ftit aktar minn tliet kwarti tal-persuni li kienu qegħdin jagħmlu użu mis-servizzi taʼ għajnuna rigward il-vjolenza domestika kienu nisa (75.4 per cent), filwaqt li 24.6 fil-mija kienu rġiel. Il-biċċa l-kbira tagħhom (59.3 fil-mija) użaw xi servizz minnhom, kien xʼkien, darba biss, 23.6 fil-mija użaw servizz wieħed jew aktar għal darbtejn, u 17.0 fil-mija użaw servizz wieħed jew aktar għal tliet darbiet jew aktar. 41.4 fil-mija tan-nisa użaw servizz minnhom, kien xʼkien, aktar minn darba, meta mqabblin ma’ 38.5 fil-mija tal-irġiel (Tabella nru 1, Ċart nru 1).

Ċart nru 1. It-taqsim tal-persuni li rrapportaw esperjenza ta’ vjolenza domestika jew li għamlu użu mis-servizzi disponibbli, bis-sess

Noti:

Iċ-ċifri jirreferu għall-għadd kollu taʼ persuni individwali li kienu qegħdin jużaw is-servizzi matul iż-żmien taʼ referenza (ara Tabella nru 1, in-noti metodoloġiċi nri 3 u 5).
Is-Servizzi inklużi: Dar Emmaus, Dar Merħba Bik, Dar Santa Bakhita, it-Taqsima tal-Vjolenza Domestika (DVU) (Aġenzija Appoġġ), s-Servizzi tas-Saħħa tal-Emerġenza (A&E), Għabex, Il-Milja, il-Korp tal-Pulizija, Victim Support Agency, u Victim Support Malta.

Tabella nru 2 tagħti tagħrif dwar il-każijiet irreġistrati maʼ entitajiet li jipprovdu s-servizzi varji fʼdan il-qasam. Il-każijiet magħdudin fi ħdan u bejn is-servizzi jistgħu jinvolvu lill-istess persuna għal aktar minn darba. Fl-2023, kienu rreġistrati bʼkollox 6,050 każ mal-entitajiet varji li jagħtu s-servizzi lill-persuni li kienu qegħdin iġarrbu l-vjolenza domestika. Fl-2023, bħas-snin taʼ qabel, is-servizzi ewlenin użati mill-persuni li kienu qegħdin iġarrbu l-vjolenza domestika kienu t-Taqsima tal-Vjolenza Domestika (DVU) fi ħdan l-Aġenzija Appoġġ (2,557 każ reġistrat) u l-Korp tal-Pulizija, li rċieva 2,244 rapport fis-sena taʼ riferenza (Tabella nru 2).

Drag to view in full

¹Ix-xelters jinkludu Dar Emmaus, Dar Merħba Bik, Dar Santa Bakhita, Għabex u Il-Milja. Ara n-nota metodoloġika nru 1.
Nota: Il-każijiet individwali huma rreġistrati maʼ entitajiet li jipprovdu s-servizz kull darba li xi ħadd jidħol fis-servizz matul is-sena taʼ referenza. Għaldaqstant, iċ-ċifri jinkludu persuni li jkunu użaw is-servizzi aktar minn darba.

Tabella nru 3 taqsam il-każijiet irreġistrati maʼ entitajiet li jipprovdu s-servizzi tal-vjolenza domestika bil-gruppi tal-età taʼ dawk li jkunu użaw is-servizz. Fl-2023, 28.5 fil-mija tal-każijiet kollha rreġistrati mas-servizzi varji kienu jinvolvu persuni li kellhom bejn it-30 u d-39 sena, filwaqt li 26.8 fil-mija tal-każijiet kienu jinvolvu persuni taʼ 50 sena u aktar (Tabella nru 3, Ċart nru 2).

Il-biċċa l-kbira, jew 83.4 fil-mija, kienu jinvolvu persuni taʼ nazzjonalità Maltija (Tabella nru 4). Is-servizzi bl-akbar għadd taʼ utenti barranin kienu x-xelters tal-vjolenza domestika bʼ44.0 fil-mija, u s-servizzi tas-saħħa tal-emerġenza bi 30.1 fil-mija (Ċart nru 3).

Drag to view in full

Tabella nru 5 turi t-tipi ta’ vjolenza rrapportati f’każijiet irreġistrati mas-servizzi ta’ vjolenza domestika, bl-utenti jkunu jistgħu jirrapportaw aktar minn tip wieħed ta’ vjolenza, ħlief għal rapporti rreġistrati mal-Korp tal-Pulizija ta’ Malta. Kważi tliet kwarti tal-każijiet (73.4 fil-mija) irrappurtati mill-fornituri differenti tas-servizzi kienu jinvolvu vjolenza psikoloġika, filwaqt li 41.3 fil-mija kienu jinvolvu vjolenza fiżika. 13.9 fil-mija tal-każijiet kollha rrapportati kienu jinvolvu jew vjolenza sesswali, ekonomika, u/jew forma oħra ta’ vjolenza (Tabella nru 5).

Din l-istqarrija tal-aħbarijiet tittratta wkoll is-servizzi mmirati lejn l-aggressuri tal-vjolenza domestika. Iċ-ċifri tal-2023 jinkludu l-programm ‘Stop!’ u s-servizz ‘Child to Parent Violence’, li t-tnejn li huma huma mogħtijin mill-Aġenzija Appoġġ, id-Dipartiment tal-Probation u l-Parole, u l-Aġenzija għas-Servizzi Korrettivi. Il-biċċa l-kbira ta’ dawk li użaw dawn is-servizzi kienu rġiel, bi ‘Stop!’, id-Dipartiment tal-Probation u l-Parole, u l-Aġenzija għas-Servizzi Korrettivi jirreġistraw aktar minn 92 fil-mija tal-utenti tas-servizz tagħhom bħala aggressuri rġiel. Is-servizz taċ-‘Child to Parent Violence’ ra l-akbar numru ta’ utenti nisa tas-servizz bi ftit aktar minn terz (34.6 fil-mija). Ħarsa lejn l-għadd waħdani ta’ persuni li għamlu użu mis-servizzi mmirat lejn l-aggressuri, kienu x’kienu, turi li 390 individwu użaw servizz wieħed jew aktar matul l-2023 (Tabella nru 6, Ċart nru 4).

Ċart nru 4. It-taqsim tal-persuni li kienu qegħdin jużaw is-servizzi għall-aggressuri, bis-sess

Drag to view in full

Nota: Iċ-ċifri totali jirrappreżentaw l-għadd ta’ persuni individwali rreġistrati fis-servizz rispettiv, u, għalhekk, il-persuni li jaċċessaw servizzi differenti jingħaddu aktar minn darba.

Tables

Table 1. Number of persons using domestic violence services by sex and frequency of service used

Table 2. Number of individual cases registered with the Malta Police Force and service providers by service and sex of service user

Table 3. Number of individual cases registered with the Malta Police Force and service providers by service and age group of service user

Table 4. Number of individual cases registered with the Malta Police Force and service providers
by service and broad citizenship of service user

Table 5. Number of individual cases registered with the Malta Police Force and service
providers by service and type of violence reported: 2023

Table 6. Number of persons registered with services for perpetrators of domestic violence¹ by age group, sex, broad citizenship, and type of violence of service user: 2023

All Tables

Methodological Notes

1. The sources of data referenced in this news release are:

• Aġenzija Appoġġ: The national agency for children and families which promotes their well-being through psycho-social welfare services. Information about both parents and children who make use of the service is recorded. Furthermore, cases of minors receiving child protection interventions by the Child Protection Services offering protection to vulnerable children and adolescents under the age of eighteen years may be recorded as a Child Protection case and not included in this data.

• Child to Parent Violence Service: A service offered by Aġenzija Appoġġ, this programme is aimed at children who are abusive towards their parents or primary caregivers. The service aims to bring all members of the family towards the available support services and provide support through social workers or other professionals to address the safety and protection of each family member. Data are included from 2022 onwards.

• Correctional Services Agency (CSA): The CSA works within the criminal justice system implementing the Courts’ decisions as regulated by the Prisons Act (Cap. 260 of the Laws of Malta). The CSA is responsible for the Corradino Correctional Facility, the Forensic Unit at Mount Carmel Hospital, and the Centre of Residential Restorative Service. Alongside implementing the Courts’ decisions, the CSA aims to provide programmes to help inmates address offending behaviour, and to prepare inmates for re-integration into the community as responsible citizens. Data provided in this news release refers to persons under the care of the CSA during the reference year.

• Dar Santa Bakhita: A second stage shelter providing accommodation and assistance to women and children who have experienced domestic or gender-based violence. Data on children accompanying their guardians and using this service is not available and only data on adult users is provided. Data on adults using this service has been provided since 2021. Data on children accompanying their guardians and using this service is included from 2023.

• Dar Merħba Bik: An emergency shelter providing immediate short-term accommodation and support for women and children who have experienced domestic violence. Data on children accompanying their guardians and using this service is included from 2023.

• Dar Emmaus: A residential shelter for victims of domestic violence in Gozo. The shelter also caters for families and homeless persons who are in need of support. It aims to provide individualised support services, helping users deal with any applicable social issues. Data are included from 2022 onwards.

• Il-Milja: Formally known as Dar Qalb ta’ Ġesu, Il-Milja is a second stage shelter provides long term accommodation and support for women and children in order to prepare them for independent living after experiencing domestic violence. Data on children accompanying their guardians and using this service is not available and only data on adults is provided. Data included from 2017 onwards.

• Department of Probation and Parole (DPP): The DPP offers a service within the criminal justice system and works in collaboration with the Judiciary, law enforcement, various agencies and Government departments, amongst others. The DPP aims at enhancing community safety by reducing recidivism through the implementation of restorative justice measures and the use of community-based sanctions such as probation and parole.

• Emergency Health Services (A&E): Data on patient injuries is collected and provided by emergency departments across Malta and Gozo. This includes information from Mater Dei Hospital and Gozo General Hospital and excludes Primary Health Care, private hospitals/clinics and private health practitioners.

• Għabex: An emergency shelter providing immediate short-term accommodation and support for women and children experiencing violence within the family, in intimate relationships or from human trafficking. Both adults and children who attend the shelter are recorded as separate service users.

• Malta Police Force: The Malta Police Force statistics section collects and provides data on all reports of domestic violence that have been made with them and registered in the National Police System (NPS). Individuals, including children, involved in a domestic violence report are recorded as separate victims. Data is recorded by the Malta Police Force based on reports registered within the NPS which captures the Police Incident Reporting System (PIRS). This system collects information on all police reports filed at police districts and stations throughout Malta and Gozo. The system records cases based on the main crime category of the report, i.e. the crime that is associated with the gravest penalty as established by relative legislation.

• Stop!: This service, previously known as the Managing Abusive Behaviour Service, is offered by Aġenzija Appoġġ. This is a service set up to assist the abusive partner in intimate relationships to become aware of, understand and change their behaviour.

• Victim Support Agency: Established under Legal Notice 418 of 2020, the Victim Support Agency provides necessary support and assistance to victims. This includes providing emotional support, providing information about their cases, guidance and accompanying victims in Court, providing information on the release of related offenders from prison. A multidisciplinary and multiagency approach is promoted to ensure continuity of service to the victim. Data are included from 2023 onwards.

• Victim Support Malta: A non-governmental organisation which provides support and assistance to victims of crime. Information provided in this regard covers those persons benefiting from services provided by Victim Support Malta for reasons of domestic violence. Currently this service is provided to persons experiencing domestic violence and aged 18 and over. Some of the data was not available from VSM for reference year 2020 as further noted in the respective tables.

2. Definitions of the types of violence:

• Physical: Any act which causes physical harm as a result of unlawful physical force such as bodily harm or deprivation of liberty, as described in Articles 214-222 and 251 of Chapter 9 of the Laws of Malta.

• Psychological: Any act which causes psychological harm to an individual such as coercion or harassment, as described in Article 251 of Chapter 9 of the Laws of Malta.

• Sexual: Any sexual act performed on an individual without their consent such as rape or sexual assault, as described in Articles 198-209 of Chapter 9 of the Laws of Malta.

• Economic: Any act or behaviour which causes economic harm to an individual such as restricting access to finances, as described in Article 251 of Chapter 9 of the Laws of Malta.

• Other: Any other act or behaviour, not elsewhere classified and registered with the different service providers in the area. Other forms of violence include stalking, neglect, deprivation of liberty, exploitation and human trafficking.

3. Measuring unit:

• Persons (Tables 1 and 6): Unique persons who made use of any services in the area during the reference period. Following a harmonisation exercise (refer to methodological note 5) all the cases registered with the Malta Police Force and different service providers are analysed and, in the case of persons making use of services more than once, such persons are counted only once. Figures across reference periods may include persons who have been included as victims or perpetrators during previous years.

• Cases (Tables 2 – 5): All individual cases registered at the respective service within the reference period. Persons who make use of the services may be counted more than once within or across services.

• Rate:

• Domestic Violence Unit (Map 1): Number of cases registered by victim’s location of residence per 1,000 mid-year resident population.
• Police reports (Map 2): Number of cases registered by location where incident occurred per 1,000 mid-year resident population.

4. Sex is a core demographic variable, serving as a key indicator to highlight gender disparities. As stated in the guidelines on standardised key social variables in official statistics, “sex” refers to the biological and physiological characteristics defining a person as male or female. Where such information is unavailable, it may be supplemented by the relevant administrative records or by the variable “self-declared sex” collected from social surveys. Administrative data related to civil processes typically reflects the registered sex with National Authorities, in accordance with the Gender Identity, Gender Expression, and Sex Characteristics Act (Cap. 540). This includes any updates to the registered sex. In the context of this news release, “sex” refers to the declared information provided by the respective service provider registering the service user. Regarding data provided by the Malta Police Force, “sex” refers to the information registered within the national administrative register.

5. Coverage: Data within this news release is produced in calendar years, i.e. from the 1 January to the 31 December.

6. Harmonisation: To compute the total number of persons experiencing domestic violence, the data provided from the different stakeholders is analysed and harmonised to identify unique persons who have been found to make use of one or more services in the area of domestic violence during the year under review.

7. Confidentiality: As with all the data collected and processed by the NSO, data is governed by the provisions of the Malta Statistics Authority Act (XXIV of 2000). This Act emphasises both the NSO’s right to collect and process private and personal information for statistical purposes, while binding the NSO from providing any identifiable information to third parties.

8. The increases within the frequency of services used and the number of service users in 2023 are to be used with caution due to the inclusion of the Victim Support Agency (VSA) as a new service and improvements on the scope of the data collection to include accompanying minors within shelters.

9. More information relating to this news release may be accessed at:

District Classification

10. References to this news release are to be cited appropriately. For guidance on access and re-use of data please visit our dedicated webpage.

11. A detailed news release calendar is available online.

12. For further assistance send your request through our online request form.

Map 1. Number of individual cases registered with the Domestic Violence Unit at Aġenzija Appoġġ by district of residence of service user (rate per 1,000 resident population): 2023

Map 2. Number of individual cases registered with the Malta Police Force by district of incident (rate per 1,000 resident population): 2023

Notes:
1. Individual cases are recorded by the service provider each time a person accesses the service during that reference year. Therefore figures include persons making use of services more than once.
2. Data recorded by the Domestic Violence Unit at Aġenzija Appoġġ includes the district of residence of the service user.
3. Data recorded by the Malta Police Force includes the district of incident reported.
4. Rates are based on mid-year population estimates which may be subject to revision.

News Releases

Il-Vjolenza Domestika: 2023

Il-Vjolenza Domestika: 2023

Il-Vjolenza Domestika: 2023

Ċart nru 1. It-taqsim tal-persuni li rrapportaw esperjenza ta’ vjolenza domestika jew li għamlu użu mis-servizzi disponibbli, bis-sess

Ċart nru 4. It-taqsim tal-persuni li kienu qegħdin jużaw is-servizzi għall-aggressuri, bis-sess

Tables

Tables

Methodological Notes