domestic violence in pakistan domestic violence in pakistan domestic violence in pakistan is an endemic social and public health problem. according to a study carried out in 2009 by human rights watch, it is estimated that between 10 and 20 percent of women in pakistan have suffered some form of abuse. an estimated 5000 women are killed per year from domestic violence, with thousands of others maimed or disabled. women have reported attacks ranging from physical to psychological and sexual abuse from intimate partners. in 1998, of the 1974 reported murders, the majority of victims were killed by family members. a survey carried out by the thomson reuters foundation ranked pakistan as the third most dangerous country in the world for women, after afghanistan and the democratic republic of congo. the majority of victims of violence have no legal recourse. law enforcement authorities do not view domestic violence as a crime and usually refuse to register any cases brought to them. given the very few women's shelters in the country, victims have limited ability to escape from violent situations. part of a series onviolence against women killing bride burning dowry death honor killing femicide infanticide matricide pregnant women sati sororicide uxoricide sexual assault and rape child sexual initiation forced prostitution sexual slavery fetish slaves human trafficking violence against prostitutes rape and pregnancy laws sexual assault campus sexual assault cybersex trafficking mass sexual assault sexual violence types of rape by deception corrective date gang genocidal in war marital prison statutory virgin cleansing myth widow cleansing disfigurement acid attack breast binding breast ironing female genital mutilation gishiri cutting infibulation foot binding other issues narcissistic abuse gaslighting dating abuse domestic violence outline management and pregnancy droit du seigneur eve teasing forced abortion force-feeding forced marriage forced pregnancy forced sterilisation marriage by abduction marry-your-rapist law raptio witch trials international legal framework dedaw cedaw vdpa devaw belém do pará maputo istanbul related topics prosecution of gender-targeted crimes women's shelter 25 november 6 february by country violence against women violence against men violence against lgbt people domestic violence is a serious problem that affects individuals and communities across the globe. in pakistan, domestic violence is a pervasive issue that affects women and children in particular. despite various efforts by the government and non-governmental organizations to address the issue, domestic violence remains a significant challenge. domestic violence can take many forms, including physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. it can also include economic abuse, where a person uses money or other resources to control and dominate their partner. in pakistan, domestic violence is often seen as a private matter that should not be discussed in public. this attitude can make it difficult for victims to seek help, and it can also perpetuate a culture of silence around the issue. women in pakistan are particularly vulnerable to domestic violence. according to a survey conducted by the pakistan bureau of statistics, almost 32% of women in pakistan reported experiencing physical violence from their husbands at least once in their lifetime. the same survey found that 25% of women reported experiencing emotional abuse from their husbands. one of the main reasons why domestic violence is so prevalent in pakistan is the deeply entrenched patriarchal norms that exist in the country. these norms place men in positions of power and authority over women and children, and they can make it difficult for women to assert their rights and seek help. in addition, the legal framework around domestic violence in pakistan is weak, and the government has been criticized for not doing enough to protect women and children from abuse. overview definition as defined by the world health organization, domestic violence encompasses physical and psychological distress including sexual coercive acts towards primarily women by a current or former male intimate partner. the landmark domestic violence (prevention and protection) act passed in 2012 by the pakistani senate defines domestic violence as including, “all acts of gender based and other physical or psychological abuse committed by a respondent against women, children or other vulnerable persons…” the definition then further specifies assault, attempt at assault, criminal force, criminal intimidation, emotional, psychological, and verbal abuse, harassment, stalking, sexual abuse, physical abuse, and economic abuse as some of the actions that fall under domestic violence. statistics an estimated 5000 women are killed per year from domestic violence, with thousands of others maimed or disabled. lisa hajjar, an associate professor at the university of california, describes abuse against women in pakistan as "endemic in all social spheres". in an observational study published in the pakistan journal of medical sciences based on a convenience sample of 218 women in the gynecology wards of three hospitals, 97% of the interviewed women said they had been victims of some form of assault, ranging from verbal abuse or threatened, to being subjected to beatings or non-consensual sex. a study by the united nations found that 50% of married women have experienced sexual violence and 90% have been psychologically abused. studies by the pakistan nation women's division and zakar et al. confirmed these statistics of high percentages of domestic violence in pakistani households. research has also shown high rates of domestic violence primarily in rural communities and afghani refugees living in pakistan. a cross-sectional survey of 490 randomly selected women from a rural health center in pakistan of reproductive age reported that 65% of those interviewed had experienced domestic violence. a special report by the united nations of the state of violence against women in pakistan reported that afghani refugees are left out of pakistani services and of pakistani statistics. the report noted that violence against women like child abuse and domestic violence is considerably high, however, proper statistics on this population are difficult to obtain. types of abuse dowry deaths dowry deaths have been described by the united nations as a form of domestic violence in pakistan. women are often attacked and murdered if their in-laws deem their dowry to have been insufficient. amongst dowry-related violence, bride burnings, also known as "stove deaths", are widely reported. in 1988 a survey showed that 800 women were killed in this manner, in 1989 the number rose to 1,100, and in 1990 it stood at 1,800 estimated killings. according to the progressive women's association, such attacks are a growing problem and, in 1994 on international women's day, announced that various ngos would join to raise awareness of the issue. newspapers in lahore in a six-month period (1997) reported on average 15 attacks a month. women's enews reported that 4,000 women had been attacked in this manner in islamabad's surroundings over an eight-year period, and that the average age range of victims was between 18 and 35, with an estimated 30 percent being pregnant at the time of death. the human rights commission of pakistan reported that about four women are killed in this manner every day, by either family members or husbands. shahnaz bukhari, who runs the progressive women's association in islamabad, has said of such attacks: "either pakistan is home to possessed stoves which burn only young housewives, and are particularly fond of genitalia, or looking at the frequency with which these incidences occur there is a grim pattern that these women are victims of deliberate murder." acid attacks acid attacks in pakistan came to international attention after the release of a documentary by sharmeen obaid-chinoy called saving face (2012). according to shahnaz bukhari, the majority of these attacks occur in the summer when acid is used extensively to soak certain seeds to induce germination. various reasons have been given for such attacks, such as a woman dressing inappropriately or rejecting a proposal of marriage. the first known instance of an acid attack occurred in east pakistan in 1967. according to the acid survivors foundation, up to 150 attacks occur every year. the foundation reports that the attacks are often the result in an escalation of domestic abuse, and the majority of victims are female. honour killing a recent report noted that one in five homicides in pakistan are attributed to honour killings. the prevalence of such honour killings that have been reported are around 2,000 killings every four years. overall, out of all homicides of both men and women in pakistan, honour killings of women constitute 21%. moreover, the perpetrator in most honour killings is the husband. one study found as high as 92% of all honour killings are committed by the spouse. the highest occurring reason in spousal honour killings was alleged extramarital affairs. much of the data has been collected by the human rights commission of pakistan through newspaper reports, however, it is clear there needs to be more systematic research by a health agency is needed to assess this public health crisis and effectively plan for solutions as many cases go unreported. another analysis of this research states that a possible explanation of the high rate of honour killings towards married women could be attributed to the generally high statistics of domestic violence in pakistan. psychological abuse psychological abuse generally includes yelling, insulting, controlling behaviors, and threatening. in a study by zakar et al., of 373 randomly selected married women of reproductive age interviewed in pakistani ospitals, 60.8% reported as current victims of severe psychological violence with 15% having been victims in the past. the percentage of women going through current psychological violence far surpassed the percentages of women going through current sexual (27.3%) and physical (21.7%) violence. moreover, more than half of these participants, 54%, reported being currently in a poor state of mental health. factors a young girl in a rural area of the sindh province of pakistan is selling these baskets her family has made for a living. poverty associated with poverty is illiteracy and social stigma against domestic violence. lack of an education due to financial reasons accompanies a lack of awareness about women’s rights. moreover, because mental health illiteracy is especially widespread in low-income areas, many women to not get appropriate treatment for the after effects of domestic violence. patriarchalism another reason given for abuses is patriarchalism in pakistani society, which marginalizes women’s role. in some traditional societies, a man is considered to have the right to physically beat his spouse on his wish. according to rahel nardos, it is "the dual constructs of women as the property of men and as the standard-bearers of a family's honour set the stage for culturally sanctioned forms of violence". in some cases, women perpetuate patriarchalism and domestic abuse especially in regard to mothers-in-law. many women are expected to be homemakers and to perform key household duties, however, if a woman is not performing her duties by her mother-in-law's standards, the mother-in-law may seek to punish the woman through her son. in analysis of data from 3,867 married or previously married women from the 2012 - 2013 pakistan demographic and health survey, association was found between the intergenerational transfer of spousal violence and cultural views of women. strikingly, 47% of these women agreed that beating of a spouse was justified if the wife had argued with her husband. statistics such as this prove that patriarchalism within the pakistani society has led many pakistani women to believe that domestic violence is normal or even at times justified. this idea is enforced by a study done of 759 pakistani women between the ages of 25 and 60 years old in which 27% admitted they had never told anyone of the spousal violence they had endured or were currently enduring. child marriage women and girls in qamber, shadadkot, north-west sindh, pakistan (8406155976)defined as marriage before the age of 18 years, child marriage is widespread in pakistan and linked to spousal violence. child marriage occurs most often in rural and low-income households where education is minimal. the pakistan demographic and health survey conducted from 2012 to 2013 reported that 47.5% of currently married women aged 15 to 24 had been married before the age of 18. moreover, of those child marriages, one-third of those women reported spousal violence. marriages within the extended family consanguineous marriages, or those within blood relations such as first and second cousins, are considered marriages in biraderi, or brotherhood, within many pakistani subcultures. based on reported research, about two-thirds of all pakistani marriages are within families. analysis of a pakistani health demographic survey from 2012 to 2013