(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-03-13 16:21

TOKYO -- Japanese police said on Thursday the number of domestic violence cases jumped 15 percent last year to 21,000 cases as more women broke their silence about assaults in the home.

"An increasing number of cases concern women who had previously suffered in silence but have decided to come out to seek advice or support from police," Kyodo news agency quoted an agency official as saying.

A growing public outcry about violence behind closed doors prompted Japan to enact its first law on domestic violence in 2001. This was expanded in 2004 to cover former spouses and children.

Courts can order perpetrators to leave their homes for two months and force them to stay away from their children, spouse or former spouse.