The North Rhine-Westphalia
Victim Protection Portal

Violence against women and girls occurs at every level of society and has many faces. Whether it is physical or emotional, domestic violence in a marriage or relationship, sexual assault or rape, harassment, cyber-violence or stalking, human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation, forced marriage or general genital mutilation – in North Rhine-Westphalia, specialised protection and advice services for all forms of violence are available to women seeking help.

Until now, there has only been a piecemeal help structure in place for boys and men as well as gay men, bisexual men, transgender people, transsexuals and intersex people affected by violence. Furthermore, there is little verifiable information about the extent to which violence is committed against men. However, it is beyond doubt that men experience violence as victims, for example, during childhood, on the street, in institutions and also in relationships.

The loverboy scam always follows the same pattern: Offenders pretend that they have found their one true love, make girls or young women emotionally dependent on them and then force them into prostitution. Initial contact is usually made via social networks and dating sites. Loverboys begin this process by deliberately seeking out girls and young women who demonstrate low self-esteem or who are having problems at school or with their families.

Children and young persons are frequently the victims of violence and crime. Violence in the form of sexual abuse is particularly serious. However, theft, robbery, domestic violence and bodily harm also constitute dangers for children and young persons.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), female genital mutilation describes all procedures which have the partial or full removal of the external female genitalia or their injury as their goal.

The most common forms of human trafficking include sexual exploitation, exploitative working conditions, the exploitation of workers, the exploitation of humans as beggars, the exploitation of humans as organ donors and compelling humans to commit criminal offences.