Policing Gendered Violence: Lessons from Latin America

• In Event: Global Victimization

Abstract

Despite persistent efforts to address interpersonal violence, its prevention remains elusive (Ptacek, 2010). Primary prevention, which seeks ‘to intervene to prevent’ violence before it occurs, is regarded as the key to its elimination (United Nations, 2015). Yet it is seriously under researched for two reasons. First, most research has focused on studying the impact of post-victimisation interventions with individual victims and offenders (PwC, 2015:17). Secondly, most of this research has focused on models of intervention in the global north (Ellsberg, et al 2015), yet women in the global south are subject to higher prevalence rates of gendered violence (WHO, 2013:46-7). This paper explores how Latin America has sought to prevent gendered violence through the establishment of police stations for women. Buenos Aries has 465 Police Stations for Women which have mandate to be involved in primary prevention activities. These police stations were designed to enhance women’s confidence in the criminal justice system, encourage reporting, prevent re-victimization, and send a message to the community that gendered violence was no longer tolerated and men who abuse women will be made accountable (Hautzinger, 2007:137). Lessons could be learned from understanding Argentina’s innovative approach to preventing gendered violence

Authors

• Kerry Carrington, Queensland University of Technology

• Máximo Sozzo, National University of Litorel