Five women have been killed in alleged acts of intimate partner violence in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) so far this year, according to police. A sixth woman was found dead in an apartment on Jan. 27, but investigators have yet to determine the relationship between her and her alleged killer.

The Canadian Women's Foundation says that intimate partner violence affects women across the country.

According to the Foundation, one woman is killed every six days in Canada by her intimate partner.

Farrah Khan, the manager of the office of sexual violence, support and education at Ryerson University, says it is "horrifying" that Ontario has seen six women killed in January alone.

Holly Hamilton's ex-boyfriend was charged in January for her murder. (Facebook) Jan Singh, Baljit Thandi, Avtar Kaur, Holly Hamilton and Elaine Bellevue are just the latest victims of alleged intimate partner violence in Ontario. The connection between the sixth woman, Hoden Said, and her alleged killer, who was found dead Friday, remains unclear.

Statistics Canada defines intimate partner violence as violence perpetrated by spouses or dating partners from either current or past relationships. It can take the form of either physical or psychological harm.

According to Statistics Canada:

Intimate partner violence was the leading type of violence experienced by women in 2016.

Ontario had the lowest reported rates of intimate partner violence in Canada in 2016.

Seven out of 10 cases of spousal violence went unreported in 2014.

Khan says that the issue of violence toward women is often seen as a private matter, but must be given more attention both publicly and politically.

"The truth is we're usually facing stories that women are harmed by someone they know," Khan says. "And we have to really explore why is it that someone very close to us can be the most dangerous person."

Violence is rooted in inequality, Lee says

The deaths of six women in the GTHA last month are the result of a wider systemic issue, according to Lee-Anne Lee, chairperson of the board of directors at the Assaulted Women's Helpline. The helpline operates 24 hours a day across Ontario, and provides services in up to 200 languages.

"I think that violence against women in general is rooted absolutely in women's inequality," says Lee. "I think that once we acknowledge that we can start to look at ways at which we as a society can behave and act differently toward women."

As Lee says, society needs to stop asking women why they haven't left their abusers. Instead, they need to be questioning why the abusers think it is okay to be inflicting harm.

Lee says the Assaulted Women's Helpline has seen an increase in calls recently. She thinks the higher number of calls is linked to the wider conversations happening in society about assault toward women, such as the "#MeToo" and "Time's Up" movements.

Women experience barriers to getting help

Women who experience abuse or violence often face barriers that keep them from the help that they need, according to Khan.

Perpetrators of domestic or intimate partner violence often isolate the victim to ensure they don't have outlets for communication or ways to get the support they need, she says.

Khan is calling for the creation of services that address the specific barriers that can exist because of a woman's ethnicity or sexuality.

She says addressing racism, transphobia, homophobia and isolation in services can help make them more accessible.

In order to find a long-term solution to violence toward women, executive director of Peel's Interim Place, Sharon Floyd, believes that society needs to address how men are being raised.

"When we normalize patriarchal views and even normalize misogynistic behaviour, we are inadvertently normalizing violence against women," says Floyd.

"It's about breaking down some of our social, political and economic barriers that we've created in terms of disparity between men and women that really perpetuates this ongoing issue."