Brain Booster for UPSC & State PCS Examination (Topic: Violence against Women: WHO Report)

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Violence against Women: WHO Report

Recently, World Health Organization (WHO) has released ‘Violence against Women Prevalence Estimates, 2018’.

The term violence against women means any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life. It is majorly divided into domestic and family violence, and sexual assaults.

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.
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 and/or sexual violence by their intimate partner.
The prevalence estimates of lifetime intimate partner violence range from 20% in the Western Pacific, 22% in high-income countries and Europe and 25% in the WHO Regions of the Americas to 33% in the WHO African region, 31% in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean region, and 33% in the WHO South-East Asia region.
Globally, 38% of all murders of women are committed by intimate partners.
In addition to intimate partner violence, globally 6% of women report having been sexually assaulted by someone other than a partner.

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.

Violence can negatively affect women’s physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health, and may increase the risk of acquiring HIV in some settings.
Children who grow up in families where there is violence may suffer a range of behavioural and emotional disturbances.
Intimate partner violence has also been associated with higher rates of infant and child mortality and morbidity.
Women may suffer isolation, inability to work, loss of wages, lack of participation in regular activities and limited ability to care for themselves and their children.

In 2019, WHO and UN Women with endorsement from 12 other UN and bilateral agencies published RESPECT women – a framework for preventing violence against women aimed at policy makers.
Each letter of RESPECT stands for one of seven strategies: Relationship skills strengthening; Empowerment of women; Services ensured; Poverty reduced; Enabling environments (schools, work places, public spaces) created; Child and adolescent abuse prevented; and Transformed attitudes, beliefs and norms.
Prevent recurrence of violence through early identification of women and children who are experiencing violence and providing appropriate referral and support.
Promoting egalitarian gender norms as part of life skills and comprehensive sexuality education curricula taught to young people.
Spreading the awareness about the Women Help Programmes and making it comfortable for them to reach out despite the social stigma. It can be done by the use of Media, Public meetings, even ASHA workers.

World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations’ specialized agency for Health was founded in 1948.
Its headquarters are situated in Geneva, Switzerland.
It is an inter-governmental organization and works in collaboration with its member states usually through the Ministries of Health.
The WHO provides leadership on global health matters, shaping the health research agenda, setting norms and standards, articulating evidence-based policy options, providing technical support to countries and monitoring and assessing health trends.
It began functioning on April 7, 1948 – a date now being celebrated every year as World Health Day.