Media

"United Nations International Violence Against Women Survey: The Hong Kong Part" (HK UNIVAWS)

29 Mar 2007

11:00 am, March 30, 2007 (Friday), Convocation Room, HKU

The Centre for Criminology and Social Sciences Research Centre of Faculty of Social Sciences, The University of Hong Kong jointly conducted the "United Nations International Violence Against Women Survey: The Hong Kong Part" (HK UNIVAWS) between May and June 2006. The survey follows an international protocol and is conducted under the auspices of the European Institute for Crime Prevention and Control, affiliated with the United Nations (HEUNI). Hong Kong is one of the eleven countries that participated in the latest round of UNIVAWS data collection (2003-2006).

Members of the press are cordially invited to attend the press conference, during which the preliminary findings from telephone interviews with 1,297 female respondents about their personal experiences with violence will be presented. Details are as below:

Date: March 30, 2007 (Friday)
Venue: Convocation Room, Room 218, Main Building, The University of Hong Kong
Time: 11:00 Presentation of findings by
- Professor John Bacon-Shone, Acting Director, Centre for Criminology, Faculty of Social Sciences, HKU
- Professor Rod Broadhurst, Honorary Professor Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, HKU; and Head, School of Justice Studies, Queensland University of Technology
- Ms. Loretta Tang S.F., Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, HKU
11:40 Question and Answer Session
Moderators: Professors John Bacon-Shone and Rod Broadhurst

Traditional crime victim surveys (CVSs) were generally lacked of sensitive questions that addressed specifically the violent victimization experience of women. The UN IVAWS was conceived as a solution to the under-reporting of sexual and domestic violence on the other CVSs as well as in the official statistics. It helps to identify the high risk female groups who are vulnerable to various form of violence. The result also aids policy makers in understanding the prevalence and severity of crime and helps shape new measures for the criminal justice system. With its standardized tool, UN IVAWS further allows comparison of data on the prevalence and incidence of violence against women across cultures.

For enquiries, please contact:

Miss Michelle Chow, Faculty of Social Sciences (tel.: 2241 5917 / email: chowmmc@hkucc.hku.hk)
Miss Vanessa Sit, Faculty of Social Sciences (tel.: 2859 2983 / email: vansit@hkucc.hku.hk)
Dr. Kent Lee, Centre of Criminology (tel. 28578332 / leekwa@hkusua.hku.hk)