In the first-ever global picture of sexual violence, the respected British medical journal The Lancet found that, worldwide, 7.2 percent of women at least 15 years old have suffered sexual violence from a stranger. The report compiled previous research conducted from 1998 to 2011 in 56 countries to detail a very grim picture of the high prevalence of sexual assault on women around the world.
The study of sexual violence against women across the globe shows that the reports of rapes on the front pages are not exaggerations or isolated incidents. Sexual assault is a daily reality that occurs at an unacceptably high rate.
The report focused exclusively on sexual assaults from strangers. Had the report also included sexual violence from partners, the numbers would have increased considerably.