Netherlands: Minister calls for action against coercive control

A new study reveals that approximately 1.5 million people in the Netherlands believe they know someone in an unsafe or unhealthy relationship. This research highlights the prevalence of coercive control, where a partner exerts structural pressure or control over another.

Minister of Justice and Security David van Weel, alongside survivors of femicide, is calling on citizens to act when they suspect coercive control is occurring. The government is also working on a legislative proposal to criminalize psychological abuse and coercive control to combat femicide.

In the Netherlands, a woman is murdered every eight days, often by a current or former partner following a period of coercive control.