MONTREAL - MONTREAL — Quebec released a new study Friday showing that more time and money is being devoted to counter conjugal violence.
The government says it now spends $73 million a year on domestic violence prevention. That is double the amount spent in 2003.
The report shows there are also 300 more people working in the field, and services for the children of abused women are more widely available.
"Before the last five years or so women could either go to a shelter or there were no other resources for them," said Diane Sasson of the Auberge Shalom. "Now we have expanded our services so women can come and do external counselling and not have to leave their homes right away."
There are also options available for men to seek help in dealing with rage, with funding for counseling programs increasing by 60 per cent since 2003 from $2.7 million to $4.3 million.
But the counseling route remains a tough sell for many men.
"For a man it's not natural to ask for help, you know, this problem, normally a man has to be strong, has to be tough and sometimes asking for help it's like you're a weak person," said Sylvain Levesque, who works with abusers. "But it's not. You have to be a strong person to ask for help."
However, in spite of the increased resources and services, the report shows that the number of reported cases is also on the rise.
In 2009, there were 17 murders linked directly to conjugal violence – up significantly from the year before. About 20 per cent of all crimes in the province are linked to domestic violence.
A researcher with the University of Montreal says some of these services need to be adapted so they are relevant to cultural communities.
"We have to be able to provide these types of women with the same types of services we provide the rest of the population, but probably in a different way," said Maryse Rinfret-Raynor.
Christine St-Pierre, Minister for the Status of Women, said the increase is likely because more abused women feel they can come forward, but there are still too many who suffer in silence.
"What we want is to help them," she said. "Of course, it's not easy to go to police and say my husband is violent with me."
St-Pierre added that more can still be done to prevent conjugal violence.
"What we have to do is work with men and women and teenagers to make sure they understand that equality between men and women is a fundamental right," she said.
