Traveller and non-national women at risk of violence

TRAVELLER and non-national women are more vulnerable to violence than the general female population, a report has found.

In addition, they face greater barriers in accessing support and are often reluctant to disclose the abuse for fear of being ostracised.

The report, by the Women’s Health Council (WHC), also found “white Irish” males who are not members of the victim’s ethnic minority group, are among the perpetrators of sexual and physical abuse.

Entitled Translating Pain Into Action — Gender-based Violence (GBV) and Minority Ethnic Women in Ireland, the report, launched yesterday, found the most common form of GBV was physical violence by a partner, followed by sexual and/or emotional violence.

Other forms of GBV include forced marriage, trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation, conflict-based rape, and female genital mutilation (FGM).

A third of family doctors had at least one disclosure of GBV made to them by an ethnic minority woman at some stage in the past.

In line with international research, the study found women from ethnic minority groups are over-represented among those seeking assistance for GBV.

Migrant ethnic minority women, who comprise about 5% of the population in Ireland, represented 13% of those seeking services from GBV organisations, while Traveller women, who make up 0.5% of the Irish population, represented 15% of users of GBV services.

The women interviewed as part of the study listed a number of barriers to disclosing the abuse including:

Acceptance of domestic violence among some minority communities.

Unequal power relations between men and women.

Different perceptions of gender roles.

A sense of loyalty to their community and fear of ostracisation, stigma, and lack of trust in mainstream services.

For many women, these factors were compounded by language barriers. Aspects of migration law were also found to trap women in situations of domestic abuse.

Launching the report, the ombudsman, Emily O’Reilly, commended the WHC for undertaking the research which she said made “crucial recommendations for improving our laws, policies and services” in dealing with these women.

www.whc.ie