CHANGSHA, July 16 -- Chinese police officers are now learning how to tactfully intervene in domestic violence cases as the first-ever training program commences.

The course teaching domestic violence intervention was launched in central China's Hunan Province on Wednesday, the first such program for police officers in China.

The three-day training, held at the Hunan Police Academy, will contribute to domestic violence prevention research in response to the United Nations' advocacy for knowledge of gender-based violence in police education.

The training will focus on gender equality, understanding domestic violence and intervention skills.

"Domestic violence is a global issue and China has roughly the same percentage of such abuse as Europe, at 30 percent," said Ma Leijun, an official with UN Woman, an organization dedicated to gender equality.

Unlike the common conception that domestic violence only happens in China's countryside, Ma said it happens just as much in cities.

In addition to training police, Ma said the program is also seeking to get the issue of domestic violence included in China's legislative agenda.

China has yet to legislate against domestic violence, which Ma says could leave those abused without legal tools to protect themselves.

More than 24.7 percent of women have suffered from physical abuse by another family member, according to a survey jointly conducted by China's National Bureau of Statistics and All-China Women's Federation.

"Domestic violence is an issue that needs addressing in China," said Ouyang Yanwen, who heads the anti-domestic violence institute at the Hunan Police Academy.

Ouyang added that in China, many people think such abuse is mostly physical but advocates are making a case that verbal and mental abuse hurts just as much.