Continued violence against women is shocking

According to a new study one in nine Dutch women have been raped at some point in their lives. The liberal daily NRC Handelsblad finds this appalling: "The most shocking thing is that these figures are hardly new. They were already frighteningly high, and they still are. So the question is: Why is Dutch society incapable of fighting violence against (mostly) women, men and children? … What can the authorities do? That they have a role to play, without penetrating the bedroom, is obvious. For example rape or sexual violence in marriage wasn't even a punishable offence until 1991 in the Netherlands. The law had to be changed. Punishing the perpetrators and helping the victims are obvious tasks. But a problem here is that the great majority of victims don't bring charges. Naturally, prevention must be given top priority. There has been no lack of initiatives in this area in recent years, but the question remains: Where are the results?"

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