A total of 3,589 persons reported suffering domestic violence or made use of services available for victims last year data issued by the National Statistics Office shows.

The majority of persons (59.3 per cent) used a service only once during the year, with 23.6 per cent using one or more services twice, and 17.0 per cent using one or more services three times or more. 

The total number of reports recorded in 2023 was around 500 higher than in the year before. However, the figures cannot be accurately compared as data from 2022 and before was derived from fewer sources. 

During 2023,  6,050 cases were registered by the various entities providing a  service to persons experiencing domestic violence (including those using more than one service). The main services were the Domestic Violence Unit (DVU) within Aġenzija Appoġġ (2,557 cases) and the Malta Police Force, which received 2,244 reports during the year. 

28.5 per cent of the total cases registered across all services involved persons aged between 30 and 39 years, while 26.8 per cent involved persons aged 50 and over. The majority, 83.4 per cent, were cases involving Maltese nationals.

Nearly three-quarters of cases involved psychological violence, while 41.3 per cent involved physical violence. 13.9 per cent of all reported cases involved either sexual, economic, and/or another form of violence.

The majority of users of perpetrator services were men , with ‘Stop!’, the Department of Probation and Parole, and the Correctional Services Agency recording over 92 per cent of their service users being male perpetrators.

The ‘Child to parent Violence’ service saw the largest number of female service users at just over a third (34.6 per cent).  

Correction December 4, 2024: A previous version compared the 2023 total to that of 2022. The figures cannot be compared as they are based on different sources.