Violence against women in the territories

In 2004, the General Social Survey GSS was conducted in the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut as part of a pilot test. For the first time, Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal women and men in the northern territories were interviewed about their experiences of spousal violence, in addition to other crimes. Compared to other areas in Canada, interviewing in the territories poses unique challenges due to incomplete telephone service for a substantial percentage of residents and a diversity of languages spoken by residents. The 2004 victimization data produce estimates with biases due to under-representation of Aboriginal people in the sample, as well as residents of rural or remote areas, and residents whose mother tongue is not English or French. It is unknown the extent to which those who were sampled differ on important characteristics (such as victimization rates) from those who were not sampled. Hence, the results presented here should be used with caution.

Prevalence and severity of violence against women in the territories

Spousal violence

Overall, 12% of adult residents of the northern territories who had ever been married or lived in a common-law relationship had experienced violence by a spousal partner in the five years prior to the 2004 GSS. Although rates were higher in the territories (12% compared with 7% in the provinces), patterns were similar to those shown for residents of the provinces: rates of spousal violence were comparable for women and men, but higher for Aboriginal people (Figure 52).

Sexual assault

The sample used in the GSS is not sufficiently large to produce statistically reliable estimates of sexual assault. However, police data are available and these consistently show much higher rates of violent crime in the northern territories than in the provinces. As shown in Figure 53, rates of sexual offences recorded by the police in 2004 were 2 to 3 times higher in the Yukon than in any of the provinces, 3 to 6 times higher in the Northwest Territories, and between 7 and 14 times higher in Nunavut. Figure 54 illustrates that rates of sexual offences fluctuate annually but appear to have declined in recent years in all three territories.

Homicide and spousal homicide

Homicide rates in the territories are also the highest in the country. Over the 30-year period between 1975 and 2004, homicide rates in the Yukon were 5.0 per 100,000 women and 12.1 per 100,000 men.  The comparable figures for the Northwest Territories and Nunavut were 7.4 for women and 13.6 for men (Figure 55). As shown earlier (Figure 11), spousal homicide rates in the territories were also much higher than the Canadian average (1.0 for women and 0.3 for men). Similar to the rates in other jurisdictions, spousal homicide rates were higher for women than for men. When calculated as a rate per 100,000 couples, rates in the Yukon were 4.4 for women and 2.4 for men and rates in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut were 7.3 for women and 3.6 for men.

It should be noted that although homicide rates in the territories are high relative to the provinces, the average number of homicide victims in the territories used to calculate overall rates is small.   For instance, between 1975 and 2004, there was an average of less than one homicide each year in the combined territories (see Table 2).

Comparing the territories and provinces on the victim-offender relationship in homicides, Table 11 shows that lethal violence occurs in similar contexts. That is, males outnumber females among homicide victims and are more likely to be killed by acquaintances and strangers. Women are more likely to be killed by spouses and other intimates.

Spousal homicides in the territories also show an age-related pattern similar to spousal homicides in the provinces with higher rates among younger people (Figure 56). The youngest women have the highest rates of spousal homicide; however, for this age group, rates are more similar for women and men in the northern territories than they are in Canada as a whole (see Figure 23).

Research has not explored in detail the possible factors behind the higher rates of violence reported in the territories. However, the differing demographic profiles of territorial dwellers compared to their provincial counterparts may offer a partial explanation. For instance, according to the 2001 Census, residents of the territories are younger on average and slightly more likely to be male. Higher percentages are Aboriginal, single and have less than a high school education. According to the 2004 GSS, rates of heavy drinking by marital partners are somewhat higher in the territories. These are all identified risk factors for crime and victimization. Levels of emotional abuse, which are risk factors for spousal violence, are similar for residents of the territories and the provinces.

Reporting to the police

The northern territories have the highest concentration of police per capita in Canada. This is due to the requirement to police very large sparsely populated areas. The number of police officers per 100,000 population is approximately 400 in the three territories and 200 or less in each of the provinces (Sauvé and Reitano 2005). Perhaps in part as a consequence of the police presence, or in the absence of other options such as shelters and other victim services, spousal violence victims in the territories reported to the police at a higher rate than victims in the provinces: 37% compared with 28%. Sample counts in the territories were too small to make statistically reliable estimates of reporting rates for female victims or for Aboriginal people separately.

The greater likelihood of victims reporting crimes to the police in the territories help to explain the higher rates of crime recorded by police in these jurisdictions compared with the provinces. But it cannot explain the higher rates of homicide, almost all of which are reported to police in all jurisdictions. Other factors, yet to be explored, are contributing to the elevated rates of spousal violence, sexual assault and other crime in the northern territories.

Victim services in the territories

Providing services to victims of violence is also a challenge in very large, sparsely populated jurisdictions like the Canadian North. According to the Victim Services Survey, there were three services for victims of crime in the Yukon, six in the Northwest Territories and two in Nunavut to assist the widespread populations of these jurisdictions.

Women’s use of services in the territories

Victims’ use of services depends in large measure on awareness and availability of services in the local area, the cultural and linguistic appropriateness of these services, distance to travel, and the availability of transportation. According to the GSS, smaller percentages of spousal violence victims used social services in the territories compared with the provinces: 21% of residents of territories and 34% in the provinces. Sample counts used in the territories are too low to permit detailed analysis of disclosures of violence by sex of victims or Aboriginal status.

In 2003/04, relatively large numbers of women in the territories were admitted to shelters for abused women. At least:

• 388 women and 219 children used shelters for abused women in the Yukon;
• 354 women and 368 children were admitted to shelters in the Northwest Territories;
• 372 women and 534 children were admitted to shelters in Nunavut.

When calculated as a rate per 100,000 population, shelter use on a single day (April 14, 2004) was more than three times higher in the Northwest Territories compared with the national average, four times higher in the Yukon and ten times higher in Nunavut (see Figure 44).

Women using other types of victim services in the territories were primarily seeking services related to sexual assault, spousal violence and homicide while men were seeking services exclusively for other types of crimes (Figure 57 and Figure 58).

Summary of violence against women in the territories

Women in the territories report similar patterns of spousal violence but higher rates than do women in the provinces. Police statistics indicate that women in the territories also experience higher levels of sexual assault and homicide. They are more likely to report spousal violence to the police, but less likely to use social services in response to a violent act. Yet shelter use in the territories is the highest in the country. Governments face important challenges in providing criminal justice and social services to the large, sparsely populated geographic areas that make up the Canadian North.

There are also special challenges to statistical data gathering in the territories due to widespread populations, incomplete telephone service and linguistic and cultural diversity. An expansion of research methodologies targeted specifically to the situation of women in the territories is needed to provide the data necessary for a fuller understanding of all aspects of violence against women in the North.