Violence against women

Women form an important social category. The basis of this category is not simply the biological entity but also the socio-cultural construct. Social status and roles of women are defined not only in terms of the gender dimension but also in terms of the norms, values, beliefs, traditions, and customs of the society. Women as a social category cut across the boundary of caste, class, race, estate etc. social groupings. Please keep it in mind that women do not form a homogeneous category. They belong to diversified socio-economic groups and are also divided in terms of spatial considerations like rural and urban. However, women are frequently an especially oppressed group within each unit of socioeconomic stratification (Agarwal 1983: 1). The problem of violence against women is not a new issue. Women in the society have been victims of humiliation, torture, discrimination, deprivation, desperation and exploitation since written records of social organization and family. In spite of the legislative measures adopted in favor of women in our society after independence, the spread of education and women's gradual economic independence, countless women still continue to be victims of violence. They are beaten, kidnapped, raped, burnt and murdered. Before proceeding ahead it is of paramount importance to understand the concept of ‘violence' against women. The term ‘violence' has been described by Gelles (1979) as an act of striking a person with the intent of causing harm or injury but not actually causing it. Strauss (1980) has described a violent as an act where there is the high potential of causing injury. The World Human Rights Conference in Vienna, first recognized gender- based violence as a human rights violation in 1993. In the same year, United Nations declaration, 1993, defined violence against women as “any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to a woman, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivations of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life”. (Cited by Gomez, 1996). Radhika Coomaraswamy identifies different kinds of violence against women, in the United Nation's special report, 1995, on Violence Against Women . First, Physical, sexual and psychological violence occurring in the family, including battering, sexual abuse of female children in the household, dowry related violence, marital rape, female genital mutilation and other traditional practices harmful to women, non spousal violence and violence related to exploitation. Secondly, Physical sexual and psychological violence occurring within the general community, including rape, sexual abuse, sexual harassment and intimidation at work, in educational institutions and elsewhere, trafficking in women and forced prostitution. Thirdly, Physical, sexual and psychological violence perpetrated or condoned by the state, wherever it occurs. This definition added ‘violence perpetrated or condoned by the State', to the definition by United Nations in 1993. The Fourth Conference of Women, 1995 has defined violence against women as a physical act of aggression of one individual or group against another or others. Violence against women is any act of gender-based violence which results in, physical, sexual or arbitrary deprivation of liberty in public or private life and violation of human rights of women in violation of human rights of women in situations of armed conflicts (Conference on Women, Beijing, 1995 Country Report).

Violence against women is defined by the Convention on Elimination of All forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) (1993) as ‘any act of gender 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' (World Health Organization (WHO) Report: June 2000). T his violence can be perpetrated by the institutions of family, state, law, religion and by individuals. Further such violence does not limit itself to physical form. It also takes psychological, economic, and sexual and various other forms. S tudies argue that violence against women is not only restricted to attacks on women's body but more importantly it is a negation of their integrity and personhood (Ghadially: 1988; Thapan: 1997). Gender violence is a phenomenon which may start at conception and can take different forms through the entire life span of women (Subhadra: 1999, Thapan: 1997). Violence manifests itself in various forms - female foeticide and infanticide, unequal access to food, shelter, clothing, education and health facilities, child marriage, wife battering, wife murder, dowry, marital rape, sati, sexual harassment at work place, sexual assaults such as rape and molestation, property violence, trafficking of women, torture of widows and many more.