Study: 36% of women in Belgium are victims of physical and sexual assault

A major report by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights is revealing that up to 36 percent of women in Belgium have been assaulted physically or sexually. The study saw more than 42,000 women between the ages of 18 and 74 throughout the EU interviewed. The results are startling.

Across Europe, one out of every three women has experienced either physical or sexual violence at the hands of men since the age of 15. Nearly 8 percent of the women interviewed admitted to being assaulted within one year of the interview.

Male partners have assaulted an alarming 24 percent of Belgian women interviewed during their lifetime. And although the study shows that Belgium reported the EU average of abuse, it was at the top when it came to violence committed in the past year.

Even higher in Europe is the percentage of women who have experienced domestic psychological violence during their lifetime, which was reported at 43 percent.

The Agency will be using the results to make recommendations to the EU to help curb the problem.