Citation

Gend. Action 1997; 1(4): 1, 4, 8.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1997, Office of Women in Development, Bureau for Global Programs, Field Support and Research, U.S. Agency for International Development)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

12321050

Abstract

The most pervasive form of human rights abuse is violence against women. This violence includes domestic violence, sexual abuse, rape, forced prostitution, female genital mutilation, and murder. It cuts across socioeconomic lines and is so deeply embedded in tradition that millions of women consider violence their lot in life, yet international efforts to combat violence against women are currently in a fledgling state. Most women experience violence in their homes, and as many as 20% of women worldwide have been raped (most know their attacker). More than half of all sexual assaults target girls aged 15 years and younger, and armies continue to use rape as a weapon of war. The female infanticide and sex selective abortions that are caused by son preference have led to imbalances in sex ratios characterized by millions of females "missing" from populations in Asia, China, and north Africa. India is the site of an estimated 5000 dowry-related deaths each year, and an estimated 130 million women worldwide have undergone female genital mutilation with two million more at risk each year. In response to this problem, more than 160 countries have ratified the UN's Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Violence Against Women, and many countries have included provisions to protect women against violence in their constitutions and criminal codes. Only 44 countries specifically protect women against domestic violence, however, and only 17 countries consider marital rape a crime (12 countries in Latin America excuse a rapist from prosecution if he marries his victim). The US has worked to place women's rights on the human rights agenda by increasing monitoring of women's human rights abuses, supporting national efforts to revise legislation, supporting campaigns to help women reduce their dependency on men and understand their rights, and equating women's rights with human rights.

Language: en