By Rojina Kandel
Since the beginning of civilization, women have been kept and looked at as weak living beings in comparison to men. Many women were and are suffering from domestic and other violence. However, there have been many approaches in the world to reduce the violence suffered by women. The definition of violence against women by the United Nations is “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 in private life.”
According to the Collins Dictionary, domestic violence takes place in the home, especially by one person against their partner. It is also been said that domestic violence in the broadest sense, refers to any including physical, emotional, sexual, or financial-between intimate partners, often living in the same household. The term is often used specifically to designate physical assaults upon women by their male partners, but though rarer, the victim may be a male abused by his female partner, and the term may also be used regarding abuse of both women and men by same-sex partners.
Lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic and its social and economic impacts have increased the exposure of women to abusive partners and known risk factors while limiting their access to services. Situations of humanitarian crises and displacement may exacerbate existing violence, such as by intimate partners, as well as non-partner sexual violence, and may also lead to new forms of violence against women. There’s a huge impact on children growing up in families where there’s violence against women. In such families, children may suffer a range of behavioural and emotional disturbances. Also, intimate partner violence may lead to higher rates of infant and child mortality and morbidity(through, for instance, lower immunization rates and malnutrition).
According to WHO, violence against women-particularly intimate partner violence and sexual violence is a major public health problem and a violation of Women’s human rights.
Estimates published by WHO indicate that globally about 1 in 3(30%) of women worldwide have been subjected to either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime.
Most of this violence is intimate partner violence. Worldwide almost one-third (27%) of women aged 15-49 years who have been in a relationship report that they have been subjected to some form of physical or sexual violence by their intimate partner.
Violence can negatively affect women’s physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health and may increase the risk of acquiring HIV in some settings.
Violence against women is preventable. The health sector has an important role to play in providing, comprehensive health care to women subjected to violence and as an entry point for referring women to other support services they need.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect People’s Review’s editorial stance.
Login to add a comment