Fewer victims of violence in Denmark

Just over 28,000 victims of violence were registered in 2020, which is a slight decrease compared to the year before

According to new figures from the national statistics keeper Danmark Statistik, 28,186 victims of violence were registered nationwide in 2020.

That’s a 4 percent decline compared to 2019 and it is largely down to a significant decrease in simple violence cases.

Simple violence cases can involve anything from punches and kicks to pushes and more atypical occurrences like mushing a cake into someone’s face.

It is the first time since 2012 that the number of registered victims of violence has declined.

Between 2012 and 2019, theannual figure had increased by 71 percent from 17,200 to 29,300.

READ ALSO: Parliament looking to crack down on psychological violence

Psychological violence, blackmail up
Typically, men make up the  majority of simple violence victims – a development that was again reflected in 2020, as 6,264 men made reports compared to 4,769 women.

Both figures decreased compared to 2019 – by 14 percent for men and 8 percent for women.

Nationally, however, there were increases in other types of violence, including threats, attempted manslaughter, illegal use of force and psychological violence (a new law in 2019 has allowed psychological violence to be registered).

There was also a 44 percent in the number of victims of blackmail in 2020 compared to the previous year.

Check out the figures here (in Danish).