Sask. RCMP reports increase in domestic and family violence

Domestic violence rates rose across all three RCMP jurisdictions in Saskatchewan in 2023, according to a new report.

The federal police service recorded 813 cases of domestic violence per 100,000 inhabitants last year in Saskatchewan's north, central and southern districts, while family violence rates were 890 per 100,000 inhabitants. These areas, which mostly cover rural areas and do not include Saskatoon and Regina, are higher than both the provincial and national rates.

Combining the number of victims in these two categories, the report says RCMP dealt with an average of 718 victims per month in 2023, an increase from 549 in 2018.

"In 2020 we saw a spike, and the numbers have been steadily up there ever since," said Saskatchewan RCMP domestic violence co-ordinator Sgt. Kim Stewart. "We're not the only division in the country that went up. But our rates right now, they are high and we recognize that. We recognize that our officers are out there dealing with more and more of these files."

Saskatchewan consistently has one of the highest rates of domestic and family violence in Canada, behind only the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut.

According to Statistics Canada, Saskatchewan had a rate of 710 domestic violence cases and 741 family violence cases per 100,000 population in 2023. That compares to 354 domestic and 350 family violence cases per 100,000 nationally. 

Rates of domestic violence across Canada have increased 14 per cent since 2018, roughly equivalent to the increase in Saskatchewan.

Stephanie Taylor runs the Regina Transition House, which provides emergency housing for women and children who have left abusive living environments. She said her organization's 24-hour crisis phone number has become significantly busier. 

"Already at mid year, I know we had 800 individuals looking for assistance on our crisis line," she said. 

She said the orgranization usually sees a three to seven per cent increase in calls per year.

"The increase in rates does not surprise me," said Jo-Anne Dusel, the executive director of the Provincial Association of Transition Houses and Services of Saskatchewan, which runs counselling and support services for victims of domestic violence, and researches the causes of domestic violence.

"One of the factors can be that people are actually reporting to police more frequently," she said. "But then when you look at other factors, like things that are going on in our society, or what we actually know about the rates of femicides — killing of women — which other data suggests to us have been increasing in the last number of years, then we can have a better picture of what's actually going on."

Financial difficulties, lack of affordable housing

According to Dusel, a lack of financial resources prevents many victims of domestic violence from escaping. Meanwhile, economic turbulence brought on by inflation and COVID-19 has strained relationships.

"The tension that's often felt when people are struggling with their finances can create more disharmony among the couple," she said.

Taylor said some economic controls could help in the province.

"In particular on rent, to stem the tide of ever increasing caught prices on substandard rental properties," she said. "We also need some changes probably again to our income assistance program in this province, which would allow people who are already on a very limited budget not to have to budget their rent and utilities."

Support is available for anyone affected by intimate partner violence. In Saskatchewan, www.pathssk.org has listings of available services across the province. You can access support services and local resources in Canada by visiting this website. If your situation is urgent, please contact emergency services in your area.