Women and violence
Violence against women and girls is one of the most dominant forms of human rights abuse.
Violence may take different forms: physical, sexual, psychological or economic and is irrespective of borders, age, culture, wealth and geographic position.
Violence against women happens at home, in streets, in schools, at work and in refugees’ camps during conflicts and crisis. It ranges from domestic and sexual violence, destructive practices consisting in abusing pregnant women, killings on alleged moral lines and other violence targetting women.
There is not a single country, street or community in the world where women are shielded from violence. Men and women have different approaches and experiences of peace and conflict. With respect to their safety, women and men do not suffer the same vulnerability. They use different mechanisms to address this issue.
Moreover, during armed conflicts or transition, the respective roles assigned to each sex are called into question, given the fact that men and women alike adapt their behaviour and change their perceptions.
Regional and international legal instruments highlight States’ responsibilities to prevent, eliminate and condemn violence against women and girls. The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Violence against Women (CEDAW) urges signatory countries to take necessary action to eradicate violence. Neverthless, the continued heinous crimes committed against women and girls are an indication that this is a real global pandemic with alarming proportions and a major challenge that should be overcome through political and legal actions.
At the international level, more than six women in ten are victims of physical and/or sexual violence in their life. A survey by the World Health Organisation suggests that of 24 thousand women in 10 countries, cases of physical and/or sexual abuses from a partner were identified on average between 30 and 60%. Violence against women and girls is therefore one of the major causes of death for women whose age group varies between 16 and 44 (source: WHO’s multi-country surveys on women’s health and domestic violence against women, 2005).
Despite some progress achieved in some countries in the fight for the eradication of violence against women and girls, the UN Secretary-General’s study on this issue notes with deep regret that rape is still prevailing in a large number of countries. 102 countries do not have the legal benchmarks to punish domestic violence and 52 nations are not opposed to marital rape.
In DRC, the situation of gender-based violence is worrying. Statistics reveal that about 1,100 cases of sexual violence are documented each month, which amounts to on average 36 victims a day. The most affected population is comprised of girls aged between 10 and 17, although 10% of the victims are less than 10 years old. (source: DRSRG / Special issue of MONUC Magazine coordinated with Gender Office / Let us all join force to stop violence against women, Volume VII, No. 46, 2009).