A proportionately greater number of Icelandic women seek medical attention for rape and domestic violence than in other Nordic countries, according to emergency room data in Iceland, Norway and Denmark.
Eyjan reports that between 120 and 150 women seek medical attention for rape and domestic violence at the emergency room in Fossvogur every year, an emergency room which serves the capital area; about 240,000 people. By comparison, 300 women per year seek the same medical attention in Oslo, and 350 women seek the same medical attention in Copenhagen – where the populations are 1.4 million and 1.8 million respectively.
The Ministry of Health speculates that part of the explanation for this dramatic difference is that the Reykjavík area is a small, tight-knit community, so people are more likely to know where they can go to seek help. At the same time, it should also be mentioned that in one opinion poll of university students in Iceland, 20% of respondents said they considered it natural to have sex with someone who was unconscious from alcohol.
As it stands, the Ministry of Health has not yet announced any plans to get to the real cause of the high incidence of reported rapes and domestic violence in Iceland.
(Photo: Wrightswords)