Violence against women
According to the UN, women experience violence occurs mainly because of physical reasons, in addition to suppression, lack of equality, and human rights (UN 2020). Violence against women is any violent behavior practiced against her based on her gender, leading to physical, psychological, and/or sexual harm. Violence against women is a clear and explicit violation of human rights prevents them from enjoying their full rights. It should be noted that the consequences of violence not only affect women but also affect the family and society as a whole, due to the negative social, economic, health, and other effects it has. Violence against women is not limited to one form, but takes several forms including:
- Intimate partner violence (battering, psychological abuse, marital rape, femicide)
- Sexual violence and harassment (rape, forced sexual acts, unwanted sexual advances, child sexual abuse, forced marriage, street harassment, stalking, cyber- harassment)
- Human trafficking (slavery, sexual exploitation)
- Female genital mutilation
- Child marriage
The causes of violence against women
There are many factors behind violence against women. Poverty increases violence against women. As both poverty and unemployment can be considered among the most common economic causes of violence, women and girls who live under poor living conditions are exposed to multiple forms of discrimination and thus may face increased risks of violence. They live in poverty, they are more vulnerable to exploitation, and they are forced into early marriage at a larger scale than girls in richer areas. Married women suffer from partner violence, but they are forced to stay with their husbands because there is not enough money for them to find shelter or to buy food. Their income is often controlled by their partner in the event of living in those violent relationships.
Negative social norms are among the most powerful factors that lead to inequality between men and women, and also contribute to increasing the risk of violence against women. Among these norms are the acceptance of patriarchal concepts related to male dominance, thus granting men the right to control the behavior of women and resorting to violence as a means of conflict resolution and acceptance in the society.
When a woman is very afraid of a man himself or of the society she lives in, it can put her at an increased risk of violence. She is forced to remain silent about the violence practiced against her, and to submit to it in the absence of any person to resort to protect her when exposed to any form of violence. Furthermore, most women are reluctant to resort to the courts and file complaints due to their conviction that there are no deterrent laws on violence. Another factor is the family pressure that women may be exposed to if they file a complaint against the man. Sometimes the husband may force her to waive all of her rights, whether legal or not. These factor interact to discourage women to resort to the courts to ward off violence.
State laws, policies and practices may have a direct role in violence against women by creating an environment that permits, tolerates, and justifies violence. In addition to this, we have to take into account the practiced or legal impunity for those who commit violence against women.