One in seven Australian adults, including one in five women, have been victims of stalking in Australia, according to a shocking report released by the conuntry’s statitics department on Wednesday (Oct 16).
The Australian Bureau of Statistc (ABS) found in its 2021-22 Personal Safety Survey (PSS) that 2.7 million adults in the country faced some sort of stalking since the age of 15.
This includes one in 15 men, ABS said in a release, adding that women are eight times more likely to be stalked by a male than a female.
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Particularly at risk are young women, students, those living on rent and those under financial stress, it noted.
In the last 10 years, one million women reported being stalked, mostly by men they knew, with 78 per cent of them stalked by an acquaintance.
Out of these, 45 per cent were current or former partners.
“Half of the women who were stalked by a male intimate partner were assaulted or threatened with assault by that same partner,” said William Milne, ABS head of crime and justice statistics.
Th stalking behaviours included unwanted online or phone contact (78 per cent), loitering near the victim’s location (60 per cent), and following or tracking them (53 per cent), ABS said in the release.
The study found that stalking is affecting the victims’ social, home and work life, with 83 per cent reporting that at least one area of their life was impacted.
What is stalking?
As per ABS definition, stalking involves various behaviours, such as loitering and following with intention to cause fear or distress. To be classified as stalking, more than one type of behaviour had to occur, or the same type of behaviour in more than one occasion, as ABS.
Following or tracking could include being watched in person, using electronic tracking devices like GPS tracking system, spyware or hacked or accessed email, social media or other online account without consent, said the release.
Inappropriate online posting and impersonation includes sharing on the internet some offensive or unwanted messages, images or personal information with aim to damage the victim’s reputation, it said.
(With inputs from agencies)
