Sex crimes in Belgium 2008-2019
Opinions on non-consensual intercourse
A 2016 study surveyed the attitudes regarding gender-based violence in Belgium. Respondents were asked under which circumstances sexual intercourse without consent was justified. The large majority of survey participants did not consider sexual intercourse without consent acceptable in any case, but some support was visible for non-consensual intercourse in the case that the other party was drunk or had used drugs (18 percent) or if the victim went home with someone voluntarily (16 percent).
The role of the victim
The same survey questioned respondents on violence against women and the victim’s own role in this. When asked to what extent they agree with the statement “violence against women is often provoked by the victim”, only two percent answered they totally agreed with that.