Title : VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

Date : Dec 27, 2021

Description :

Based on a News Article published in the ‘The Hindu’ on 25^th  December 2021 on Page Number 1

 

Useful for UPSC CSE Prelims and Mains (GS Paper I)

 

Context:

 

• In India, dowry murders, acts of sexual harassment, torture, rapes, and domestic violence have all increased dramatically, according to a report from the National Crime Record Bureau.

 

Basic Introduction about Violence against Women:

 

• "Any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual, or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion, or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life," according to the United Nations.
• Women's violence is a social, economic, developmental, legal, educational, and human rights issue, as well as a physical and mental health concern.
• In women, it is an avoidable source of morbidity and mortality.
• Pregnancy, infancy, youth, adolescence, adulthood, and old age are all examples of violence against women.

 

Findings and Facts:

 

• According to WHO statistics, one in every three (35%) women in the world has experienced physical or sexual intimate relationship violence or non-partner sexual violence at some point in their lives.
• Women's violence, especially intimate partner and sexual violence, is a major public health issue and a violation of their fundamental rights.
• A male intimate partner is responsible for 38 percent of all female killings worldwide.
• In some situations, violence can have a significant impact on women's physical, emotional, sexual, and reproductive health, as well as increase their chance of contracting HIV.

 

 

Factors that Predispose:

 

• Men with inadequate education, a history of child maltreatment, exposure to domestic violence against their mothers, harmful alcohol use, unequal gender norms, including views permissive of violence, and a sense of entitlement over women are more likely to perpetrate violence.
• Women with low education, exposure to mothers being harmed by a partner, childhood maltreatment, and views tolerating violence, male privilege, and women's submissive status are more likely to experience intimate partner violence.
• Advocacy and empowerment counseling, as well as home visits, have been shown to be effective in preventing or reducing intimate partner violence against women.
• Conflict, post-conflict, and displacement situations can worsen current forms of violence against women, such as violence perpetrated by intimate partners and non-partner sexual violence, and can also lead to new forms of violence against women.

 

 

Causes:

 

• Gender inequality is a fundamental cause of violence against women, putting women at danger of a variety of forms of violence.
• Gender preconceptions and discriminatory gender norms lead to structural inequity.
• Psychiatric Morbidity: This term refers to the occurrence of both physical and psychological deterioration as a result of a mental or psychological disorder, which is frequently caused by alcohol intake.
• Regular alcohol usage by the husband has been linked to women's mental health problems.
• Alcohol acts as a situational element, raising the risk of aggression by lowering inhibitions, clouding judgment, and weakening the ability to understand cues.

 

 

 

 

• Factors of socioeconomic status:
• Patriarchy has been identified as the primary source of violence against women. Women who have a greater economic standing than their husbands and are perceived to have the authority to shift traditional gender roles are at a higher risk of violence.
• Factors affecting the family: Victimization and perpetration of violence against women in adulthood are predicted by childhood exposure to harsh physical discipline and watching the father beating the mother.

 

• Cultural and traditional practices:
• Female genital mutilation can result in death, infertility, and long-term psychological damage, as well as greater physical pain.

 

• Acid assaults: For causes as diverse as family feuds, failure to satisfy dowry demands, and rejection of marriage proposals, acid attacks have arisen as a cheap and easily accessible weapon to disfigure and sometimes murder women and girls.
• Women are killed in the name of family honour in a number of countries around the world, including Bangladesh, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Pakistan, Turkey, and India, for a variety of reasons, including alleged adultery, premarital relationship (with or without sexual relations), rape, and falling in love with someone the family dislikes, all of which justify a male member of the family killing the woman in question.
• Early marriages: Early marriage, with or without the consent of the girl, is a type of violence that jeopardizes millions of girls' health and autonomy.
• The judicial and law enforcement apparatus: A judicial system and law enforcement apparatus that are insensitive, ineffective, corrupt, and unaccountable fail to deter many types of crimes.
• Women are disadvantaged by sociocultural factors such as: Gender stereotypes have persisted throughout history.
• Women's principal roles have traditionally been marriage and motherhood.
• Unmarried, separated, or divorced women must marry because they are stigmatized.
• In Indian marriages, the habit of dowry is still practiced.

 

Consequences:

 

• Violence, in any form, harms women's physical, emotional, sexual, and reproductive health, as well as their self-esteem, capacity to work, and ability to make fertility decisions.
• Economic Issue: Violence against women can have a significant impact on both the home and national economies.
• Loss of income, productivity, healthcare, and social service costs are all direct costs.
• Impact on child well-being, female and child mortality, and intergenerational social and psychological costs are all examples of indirect costs.
• Violence prevents women from participating in development and planning activities at both the micro and macro levels.
• By restricting women's ability to act or move freely, violence stops them from experiencing or receiving the rewards of growth.
• Violence against women is a barrier to poverty alleviation projects because it prevents equal resource distribution.
• Article 14, 21, 19, and 32 of the Indian constitution prohibit any form of violence against women from achieving their fundamental rights.

 

Associated Concerns:

 

• Underreporting: According to WHO estimates, only about 40% of women who are victims of violence seek treatment.
• Women who seek help frequently turn to family and friends, with just a small percentage turning to formal organizations and procedures such as the police and health services.
• Less than ten percent of women seeking aid for domestic violence sought assistance from the police.
• Erroneous Laws: The majority of the time, policies and legislation pertaining to women's safety are either not in compliance with international standards or are not properly implemented.
• Women have a larger obstacle to justice as a result of laws dealing to violence.
• Data and statistics on crime against women are scarce.
• At the national, state, district, and block levels, comprehensive and systematic research and analysis on crime against women is required.
• The accused are well-known members of the community, either from the family or from the neighborhood. Women are not safe with those they know well, and they may be unsafe with those who are close to them.
• Inadequate implementation: While many laws and regulations exist, their complete application in terms of legal literacy, educating individuals in charge of enforcing the law, and legal support services is lacking.

 

Next Steps:

 

• Gender-based legislation: It is critical to enact and enforce legislation, as well as design and implement policies, that promote gender equality by eliminating discrimination against women in marriage, divorce and custody, inheritance, and asset ownership.
• Financial Stability: Increasing women's access to paid work.
• Developing and funding national programs and policies to combat gender-based violence.
• Improve the system for gathering crime surveillance data on female violence.
• Service providers and law enforcement authorities receive capacity building and training to deal with situations of violence against women.
• Initiatives mediated by men: Ensure that men are included in the development of a program for abusers.
• Prevent recurrence of violence by identifying women and children who are victims of abuse early and providing appropriate referrals and support.
• Encourage young people to learn about gender equality as part of their life skills and comprehensive sexuality education curricula.
• Gender-specific surveys: Conduct population-based surveys, or include violence against women in population-based demographic and health surveys, as well as surveillance and health information systems, to generate evidence on what works and the scope of the problem.

 

Tags : women empowerment, socio economic data