GETTY Increasing numbers of female refugees are seeking sanctuary in battered women centres

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In and around Stuttgart alone there were 105 rapes, assaults and robberies of women and 77 against children in the refugee centres, but the local government admits that the number of unreported cases is "significantly larger”. In the state of Saxony-Anhalt there are no figures available but 20 female shelters have now opened their doors to provide a refuge for battered women and children.

Employees in asylum shelters are increasingly asking for a safe place for women and children Sylvia Haller

The distressing news about refugee women in Germany comes as the world demonstrates in the UN's 'International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women'. Those affected in Germany come from countries such as Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, according to a survey of the German press agency. There, they were beaten, oppressed, or passed to other men.

Part of the problem is the inability of men to accept the freedom accorded to their wives, daughters and siblings in the west. In the lands where they come from, women are often regarded as property to be used an abused at will and the culture shock of females showing independence for the first time often leads to violence. Only recently a Syrian man was jailed for life for attempted murder after throwing his three small children from the first floor window of his asylum accommodation because he was angry at the "independence" his wife had displayed since arriving in Germany. "Employees in asylum shelters are increasingly asking for a safe place for women and children," said Sylvia Haller, a spokesman for an autonomous shelter network in Baden-Württemberg.

Cologne: Sex Attacks and Robberies Tue, January 12, 2016 Thirty-one suspects, including 18 asylum seekers, are under investigation over offences including sexual assault and theft in Cologne on New Year's Eve. Far right protestors in Lepzig have rallied against refugees and German chancellor Angela Merkel. Play slideshow Reuters•Getty 1 of 22 Protestors in Lepzig rally after over 100 women were sexually assualted on New Year's Eve

In the university city of Heidelberg, 50 women and 58 children had to flee to a women's shelter last year from violent husbands or aggressive in-laws. But more than 135 women and 155 children had to be turned away because there was simply no room for them. Yadav, a Stuttgart-based counselling centre for young women in danger in forced marriages or “violence in the name of honour”, says the number of cases will rise in the coming years. The soaring incidents of sexual abuse of women and children in German refugee camps forced Angela Merkel's government to pledge over £160 million to combat it in April this year. In the town of Giessen near Frankfurt 15 women in one camp filed complaints to local police of rape and other forms of sexual abuse.

GETTY Today is the UN's international day for the elimination of violence to women and girls

The Ministry for Families, Seniors, Women and Youth (BMFSFJ) will now provide money for the scheme which aims to give better protection to the vulnerable, including the remodelling of migrant centres to give more privacy to females and minors. Police have for long told of a rising trend of abuse, including rapes, but in the highly-charged political atmosphere that surrounds the whole refugee issue in Germany the problem has largely remained unaddressed. Municipal authorities will be able to get the money from central government in the form of in zero-interest loans.

GETTY Angela Merkel's government pledged over £160 million to tackle sexual abuse against German refugees

"Unfortunately we know that children and women in the camps are not safe from abuse and sexual assault. That's why we have to make sure that they're protected," said junior minister Ralf Kleindiek. "Not only measures regarding staff, but also structural measures have to be implemented such as lockable accommodation units and separate sanitary facilities. "For the children and adolescents we also need designated rooms to enable play and learning." Fuelling the rise in sexual assaults is alcohol. Many Muslim men are exposed to alcoholic drinks for the first time in their lives, leading to booze binges that end in mayhem.

GOOGLE MAPS In and around Stuttgart alone there were 105 rapes, assaults and robberies on women

A clampdown on this has started with a ban on all alcohol being brought into any migrant shelter anywhere in the country. Part of the scheme to clamp down on sex abuse involves working with experts from Unicef to train staff in how to deal with the problem at more than 100 centres. Around £3 million of the total amount available will be spent on constructing specialist centres to provide counselling for survivors of rape and torture.