Concluding remarks

• Author: European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (EU body or agency)
• Pages: 111-113

111

Concluding remarks

The results of this survey powerfully indicate the extent to which people in

the EU are exposed to physical violence. Overall, 6% of people in the EU

experience physical violence in ayear, some 22million people (an estimate

based on the results of the survey relative to the EU’s population). The f‌indings

also document the pervasive impact of physical violence through the victims’

injuries and psychological consequences. Furthermore, most experiences

of violence are not reported to the police, the results show. Some incidents

that are not reported to the police come to the attention of other authorities

and services, when victims either report the incidents or seek assistance on

issues linked to experiencing violence, such as medical treatment for injuries.

The contact that police and other authorities and services have with victims

of violence should be seen as opportunities to inform victims of their rights

and other measures put in place to help them to seek redress and overcome

the incident and its consequences.

These survey results– based on interviews carried out in 2019– form

abaseline for experiences of crime and feelings of safety with respect

to anumber EU strategies adopted in 2020, including the EU Strategy on

Victims’ Rights 2020-2025, European Gender Equality Strategy 2020-2025,

EU LGBTIQ equality strategy 2020-2025, as well as the measures that will

be adopted as afollow-up to the European disability strategy 2010-2020.

The results also provide abackdrop for data on the experiences of specif‌ic

population groups and allow for an analysis of differences in outcomes in

crime victimisation and safety, contributing in this way to the evidence base

relevant for the EU anti-racism action plan 2020-2025 and the EU Roma

strategic framework 2020-2030.

The survey results presented in this report on crime victimisation and safety

can contribute to the implementation of these and other policies– and the

changes they seek to implement and accelerate– in anumber of ways.

These include identifying good practices through acomparison of results at

the country level; identifying groups at risk of being left behind or at risk of

not having their voices heard due to concern for crime and safety restricting

their participation in society; and supporting efforts to raise awareness of

people’s rights as crime victims and their responsibilities as witnesses.

Before this survey no comparable data measured the extent and nature of

experiences of physical violence in the EU, although it constitutes aclear

violation of the fundamental rights to human dignity and the integrity of

the person, as Articles2 and 3 of the Charter set out. Previously, the most

comprehensive data set concerning experiences of violence came from FRA’s

survey on violence against women. However, that survey did not collect data

on men’s experiences of violence. The data collected in the present survey

also help identify who in the population is more likely to experience physical

violence. Young people, persons with limitations in their usual activities

(due to ahealth problem or disability), ethnic minorities, and people who

are lesbian, gay or bisexual, or identify in another way, experience physical

violence at higher rates and therefore require particular attention in efforts

to ensure people’s personal safety.

In addition to differences between groups in society at the EU level, the

survey results point to notable differences in victimisation rates between