Stalking: the numbers of a crime that still has few complaints

Threats, harassment, harmful acts continued over time, which induce mental and physical discomfort in the person who suffers them and a reasonable sense of fear. This is the definition that the Women’s House for not being subjected to violence gives of the term stalking. The crime exists in Italy in 2009. In addition to making life impossible for those who are victims of it, it can often also be the prelude to other forms of violence.

The Italy 2021 Eurispes report says one in 10 citizens report having been the victim of stalking. Compared to the previous year, the phenomenon of persecutory acts increased by 1.4%. Girls between 18 and 24 are the people most targeted. In one in four cases, the stalker is the victim’s former partner. Only 13.7% of victims report it. Half of the people commit not to react or choose self-defense.

He did not do this Alessia Orro, the volleyball player who has seen the stalker who had persecuted her three years ago return in recent weeks. She denounced and invited everyone to do it. Women suffer persecution three times more than men: 14% against 4.5%.

Usually it is stalker he is a person who knows his victim well. In 25.6% of cases it is the ex partner, but also acquaintance and friends with percentages over 10%, then partners, colleagues and relatives.

The stalker is the partner especially for those in couples and with children (10.5%). while the ex-partner particularly affects single parents with children (41.2%), victims who live alone (37.7%) and cannot count on the support of a cohabiting partner. Precisely this closeness means that there are no complaints and solutions for conciliation are sought, without letting others know what is happening. Stalking changes lifestyle habits: almost 2 in 10 victims decide not to go out alone or stop going out altogether.