To say that women need to be stronger in order to end domestic violence is perpetuating the idea that acts of violence against womeare only a women’s issue, when in fact they are a human rights issue.

Being strong or not, being firm or not, has nothing to do with being in an abusive relationship. Any woman can be a victim: her age, color, social status or profession doesn’t matter.

It’s very frequent to hear ‘why didn’t she leave?’ We ourselves might have already asked that question. But those questions preserve a culture of victim blaming. Even without intention, by asking those questions, we are blaming the victim for something she didn’t ask for. What you might not know is that it is very dangerous to leave an abusive relationship: 70% of all deaths in domestic violence cases happen after the victim leaves the abuser.

And this takes us to another point: the establishment of this culture transforms victims into people that deserve to be abused and mistreated, making them fear judgment and, therefore, not come forward and speak up. Violence again women is a bigger issue than what statistics show: almost 1 in every 2 women that have suffered domestic violence has never told a soul.

Stronger answers from our protection institutions are also necessary to end the culture of silence and victim blaming. Women need to feel that their accusations will be taken very seriously and that justice will be made, in order for them to start the process of gaining their life back.