WHO Finds Violence Against Women Is 'Shockingly' Common

[RedCappedBandit]

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/06/20/193475321/who-finds-violence-against-women-is-shockingly-common

Thirty-five percent of women around the world have been raped or physically abused, according to statistics the World Health Organization Thursday. About 80 percent of the time this violence occurs in the home, at the hands of a partner or spouse.

"For me personally, this is a shockingly high figure," says , an epidemologist from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. "The levels of violence are very high everywhere."

Devries and a team at the WHO analyzed data from 141 studies in 81 countries. Their findings offer the first comprehensive look at domestic violence globally and give insights into how abuse hurts women's overall health.

"The main message is that this problem affects women everywhere," Devries says. Because of the stigma associated with rape and abuse, "some of our findings may underestimate the prevalence."

Prevalence of rape and domestic violence in each region of the world.

More + audio @ link.


Sickening. Even more sickening that I can't say I'm all that shocked.

[etherealtruth]

1. No surprise there. Horrifying, but not surprising :-(

[ismnotwasm]

2. WHO report highlights violence against women as a ‘global health problem of epidemic proportions’

The title of the report caught my eye

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/news/releases/2013/violence_against_women_20130620/en/

[Brickbat]

3. Not shocked at all.

Many women have known this for a long, long time.

[RedCappedBandit]

4. I don't see how one could really be shocked..

When you look at the way we as a society treat victims as if they're criminals under interrogation.. and we defend the actual perpetrators of these crimes.. what can we expect?

[Hydra]

5. I bet it's MUCH higher

Last edited Fri Jun 21, 2013, 01:23 PM - Edit history (1)

60%+

The sexual abuse alone is off the charts, let alone garden variety violence, verbal abuse and mental cruelty.

At least in the US, it's a cultural thing, sometimes backed up by religion and traditions.

At least we're past the point where a man hitting a woman on the movie screen is not acceptable. I get huge culture shock watching old movies

[RedCappedBandit]

7. It probably is.

And a lot of people aren't even past that point.

A lot of these internet memes floating around various forums perpetuate the rape culture in the minds of the young men who are active in those communities. Sickening.

[redqueen]

6. K&R

Women's rights are human rights.

[duuser5822]

8. One of the more disturbing things I've read lately

Very sobering, and a reminder of how much injustice exists in this world.

[BainsBane]

9. K and R

[zeeland]

10. Doesn't even account for the

violence hardwired into our culture, government, entertainment industry, military etc.
A law requiring a woman to have a vaginal probe inserted before she is "allowed" to
have an abortion is a law designed to intimidate, demoralize and violate a woman in
every possible way.

We dictate to the rest of the world how they should treat women and girls. We are
such hypocrites. Old powerful men are terrified of women and the potential for change
if we ever exert OUR power.

[niyad]

12. you are so correct. when I hear "but it's so much better than other places" I want to scream.

in riane eisler's "the chalice and the blade" she says that, whenever a society starts working on a more equal, partnership frame, with cooperation, creativity, etc , where women are starting to gain ground, the patriarchy reacts exactly as we are seeing now.

[redqueen]

13. +1

[niyad]

11. k and r for this depressing, but not in the least surprising, information