on domestic violence was told yesterday.

This happens even though half Bermuda's women will be attacked by their partner at some point, the meeting heard.

The Physical Abuse Centre, which gives refuge to battered women, is holding the meeting to help build a united front against domestic violence.

Ms Judy Bittman, a expert from Florida, told the gathering there were far more shelters in the US for animals than for battered women.

"We put more dollars into taking care of animals than we do into taking care of women and kids,'' she said.

Mr. Nelson Bascome MP, a counsellor and Opposition spokesman on Health, was one of the 70 people at the Cathedral Hall meeting.

He told The Royal Gazette the point about shelters also applied to Bermuda.

"We have one shelter for women and one shelter for animals, and by far the SPCA has a much larger working budget than the Physical Abuse Centre.

"That suggests what our attitude is here in Bermuda towards physical abuse, and especially towards women.'' Ms Bittman and her colleague Ms Terri O'Sullivan, who work for a refuge in Orlando, came to the meeting armed with a list of shock claims from US researchers.

Domestic violence was the number one health risk for women in America, they told the meeting.

And most batterers were ordinary men from all walks of life, with no mental illness.

The most common weapon was the telephone receiver -- often used when women called for help. But most battering was done with the fist.

The typical place for wives to be beaten was the bedroom, they said. And 90 percent of victims' children were aware their mother was being beaten by their father.

"The size of the domestic violence problem in the US, in Bermuda and the world is just incredible,'' Ms Bittman said.

"Fifty percent of women are at some point going to be battered by their partner.

"For every woman I know who's living in a non-violent home there's another woman out there getting beat up -- by the same person who is saying: `I love you'.'' About two thirds of women who were being battered never contacted a shelter or Police, and they had to be reached.

"You have a chance to save lives,'' she told an audience including women's group leaders, Police officers, social services workers, nurses, church representatives and former victims.

Ms Bittman said men mostly used violence because, as a way to control their wives or girlfriends, it worked.

"For men who batter their partners there are very few consequences. "Usually they don't lose their jobs. They don't lose their friends. They get a lot of support for doing this stuff.

"Until we as a society say it doesn't work any more it's going to keep on happening.'' The conference heard a complaint that some Bermuda Police called to "domestic'' incidents were themselves batterers.

But a Policeman at the meeting won applause when he called for counselling for men, saying he realised control was an issue in his own marriage.

Physical Abuse Centre head Mrs. Arlene Swan called for Bermudians to join together to fight the problem and not stay in "isolated cliques''.

The two-day conference continues this morning. One of the topics will be violence among dating teenagers.

Delegates will also discuss plans for Bermuda to copy Quincy, the Massachusetts town where batterers are vigorously pursued and victims encouraged to press charges.