Around three million womenin the UK experience some sort of violence.
If that sounds like a routine statistic, let's name it so that it really hits home. This includes domestic violence, rape and sexual violence, sexual harassment, female genital mutilation, forced marriage, crimes in the name of honour, trafficking and sexual exploitation.
These are very much women in our own communities, our work place, our friends and our families.
And that's just the UK. Globally, the picture painted is a terrifying one. So that's why we need events such as the International Day for The Elimination of Violence Against Women, because a topic, so often swept under the carpet, is brought to the fore.
Today, UN Women has released an infographic that focuses on the staggering number of women and girls affected by violence worldwide.
For example, 133 million women and girls alive today have undergone forced genital mutilation in countries around the world. That's over twice the entire population of Britain.
Sobering, isn't it?
Take a look:
