The silhouette of a person seen through a window. Statistics Finland has reported that the number of women who reported experiencing domestic violence rose by over five per cent between 2022 and 2023, to 12,300. Altogether more than half of women in the country have experienced physical violence, sexual violence or threats of violence. (Emmi Korhonen – Lehtikuva)
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IN FINLAND, concerns about intimate partner violence are mounting as the government reduces funding for social and health care organisations.
Statistics Finland in June reported that the number of people who reported experiencing domestic violence increased by 5.3 per cent from the previous year to 12,300 in 2023, with women accounting for 74 per cent of the victims and men 75 per cent of the suspects.
The incidence of violence committed against a spouse surged by 107 per cent from the previous year.
A third of women in the country have been subjected to violence by their current or former partner. Altogether more than half of women in the country have experienced physical violence, sexual violence or threats of violence.
Finland is the second most violent country for women in Europe, revealed a survey conducted in 2014 by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights.
“Many stakeholders in the field are of the view that there are challenges associated with comparing and collecting the data, but studies have repeatedly shown that violence is more widespread in the Nordics than rest of Europe,” Jaana Hirsikangas, the executive director of UN Women in Finland, said to YLE on Tuesday, 22 October.
Experts have named the phenomenon as the Nordic paradox, highlighting the disconnect between the reality and the region’s reputation as a bastion for equality.
Hirsikangas reminded that whatever the global data suggest, the data have been consistently bad in Finland: “Finland’s own statistics show that violence against women is a major social problem in Finland.”
Despite the grim reality, the Finnish government is looking to make significant cuts in the budget of the Funding Centre for Social Welfare and Health Organisations (STEA). The budget is set to contract by more than a third by the end of the electoral term – from 384 million euros in 2024 to 253 million euros in 2027.
Kristian Wahlbeck, a senior specialist at Mieli Mental Health Finland, said he is very concerned about the cuts because anti-violence work is carried out primarily by organisations that, for the most part, receive their funding from the state.
He told the Finnish public broadcasting company that the government appears not to comprehend the widespread and long-term consequences of its decisions. The cuts, he warned, will lead to a surge in costs in future and to problems passing on from one generation to the next.
“The intergenerational nature of problems means that harmful childhood events can repeat in the next generation. Children learn problem-solving skills from their parents. If the approach is violence, it may turn into a behaviour in adulthood,” he said.
The Federation of Mother and Child Homes and Shelters has calculated that if the cuts are implemented across operations, around 2,500 people will be left without the help they need and know-how in domestic violence will erode. As social welfare organisations will have to scale back operations, access to counselling and early support will become more difficult and problems will become more complex and deeply ingrained.
“As a result of the cuts, the need for public services will increase. This in turn will increase social and health care costs and add to the burden of well-being services counties,” explained Wahlbeck.
Outside help can have a key role in tackling conflicts and violence in relationships, Teemu Vauhkonen, a senior researcher at THL, stated to YLE.
“Broadening the perspective after an intervention can help to manage problems. If you seek help during a crisis, after that it’ll be possible to focus on working to stop the violence. This can also improve the relationship more broadly, not just stop the violence,” he commented.
“We’ve made the general observation that violence starts earlier than assumed and that psychological violence is key: a lot could’ve been avoided by stopping the cycle of violence during psychological violence. This is why low-threshold support is important and should be sought before the situation escalates.”
The issue also provoked discussion during the question-time debate held in parliament last Thursday, according to Helsingin Sanomat.
Sofia Virta, the chairperson of the Green League, pointed to statistics on the prevalence of violence against women in asking how the government intends to secure support for victims while slashing funding for social welfare and health care organisations.
Minister of Social Affairs and Health Kaisa Juuso (PS) described the issue as important but added that financial realities have left the government with no choice but to cut funding for organisations. She pledged to cast light on how the cuts should be targeted to minimise their impact on organisations at the end of the year, once a rapporteur has finalised their report on the targeting.
Also Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) asked for the floor to deliver a statement that was unusually sombre in the context of question-time debates.
“Intimate partner violence and violence against women are among the most abhorrent things that exist. It tells that there’s something utterly sick in this country, in our homes,” he stated, viewing that the effort to combat such violence is about “much more” than money or a black spot on society.
He stopped short of defining what “much more” entails, though.
Aleksi Teivainen – HT
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Source: www.helsinkitimes.fi
