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maltatoday WEDNESDAY 9 MAY 2018 News 5 TIA RELJIC THE number of domestic vio- lence victims seeking social services is highest among women above the age of 40, Chairperson of the Commis- sion on Domestic Violence Joe Gerada said, adding that more younger people report such cases to the police. Another encouraging sta- tistic shows that the number of men reporting cases of domestic violence and seek- ing therapy has increased, he said. Gerada was citing the Com- mission on Domestic Vio- lence Annual Report, which was presented to Equality Minister Helena Dalli yester- day. The report includes 2017 NSO harmonised data for the year 2016. While women are more like- ly to be victims of physical violence, the minister said, psychological and emotional violence is something which affects men. "This is a step in the right direction as men are reporting instances of such abuse," she told this newspa- per. A new phenomenon the Commission and service agencies have had to deal with recently was instances of violence by children against their parents, Gerada said. Agenzija Appogg has worked with 12 such cases in 2017. Equality Minister Helena Dalli commended the efforts of the Commission, particu- larly in compiling the report, as she said it served as a stra- tegic report which responded to the changing needs of so- ciety. The strategy calls on all members of society to change their attitude towards do- mestic violence and serves as a renewed call for equality, Dalli said. "This is because gender- based violence and domestic violence are deeply rooted in the inequality between gen- ders, as well as imbalanced gender expectations, which are further perpetuated by a culture of tolerance and de- nial of the prevalence of such violence." She also praised the fact that, as listed in annual re- port, the Commission has been working with other in- stitutions including the po- lice force, the Department of Justice, social worker agen- cies, and health centres. The Bill on gender-based vi- olence and domestic violence has now become law, enforce- able in the coming weeks, the minister announced. "I am positive that this new law will mark a new era for the Com- mission, which will have a far wider remit and mandate to truly advocate against vio- lence in all of its forms," she said. The Commission has also set up a new sub-group – 'ac- cess to justice' – which moni- tors the workings of law and highlights improvements which need to take place in this regard. "Indeed, the new Act envisions the Commis- sion as a watchdog over Gov- ernment, as well as an overse- er of our society as a whole." "In line with this Govern- ment's stance on equality, the law is framed in the context of protection for all, irrespec- tive of that person's iden- tity. This is because violence knows no gender, race, or social class. The law must be able to protect all those who need to seek justice," Dalli said. The Ministry for Equal- ity has also launched the first national Gender-Based Violence and Domestic Violence Strategy and Action Plan based on the four pillars of the Istanbul Convention which ensures that both law and policy work together to ensure that the victim's needs are addressed. tia.reljic@mediatoday.com.mt Young people more likely to report domestic violence, older victims seek more help Domestic violence Number of Domestic Violence victims flagged by locality Cases registered with the Police by age group of victim Cases registered with the Emergency Health Services by age group IMPORTANT On Sunday 6 May, a Ministry of Finance advert was mistakenly published in MaltaToday. The advert had in fact already been published previously and was no longer valid. On behalf of the client, we apologise to our readers for this oversight.