How to reduce rape
It is the hardest violent crime to prosecute. But most countries can do better
SEXUAL VIOLENCE is less common today than it was in earlier generations. But even in rich, peaceful democracies it is both widespread and distressingly easy to get away with. A fifth of American women will be raped at some point, by one estimate. Yet only a quarter of victims report it. Most stay silent despite the lifelong damage that rape can inflict and the desire to lock up a predator and deter others. They do so partly because the odds are stacked against them. In England and Wales in the 12 months to March 2019 only 1.5% of reported rapes ended in a criminal charge. With so little prospect of justice, many women are reluctant to undergo the ordeal of reporting an attack to the police.
This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline “How to reduce rape”
From the January 4th 2020 edition
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