11 women a day were victims of sexual violence in Catalonia in 2023

More than 4,000 women were victims of sexual violence in Catalonia in 2023, an average of 11 women per day, according to data from Catalan police Mossos d'Esquadra. 

The police investigated 3,759 cases of sexual violence crimes, an increase of almost 34% compared to 2022. 

Sexual offenses within intimate partner relationships increased by 33% in 2023, while reports of male violence in these relationships increased by 10%, bringing the total number of reported incidents to nearly 17,000. 

Mossos spokesperson Montserrat Escudé said that the increase in police reports "does not necessarily mean an increase in sexual violence." 

"This is due to many factors. One of them is that we know where to act to prevent it," she added. 

Escudé also pointed out that the most serious forms of sexual violence have "moved away" from recreational contexts.    

"We still have sexual violence, but from a criminal perspective, they are less severe, which does not diminish the significant impact on the victim," she said. 

In Catalonia, 13 women were murdered by their partners in 2023, four more than the previous year. Of these, only one had reported her killer. 

The data presented by the Mossos d'Esquadra coincides with International Women's Day, celebrated on March 8, and thousands are expected to gather in Barcelona tonight for a mass protest.