Domestic violence is a serious issue in Pakistan, with women and girls being the primary victims. According to a 2018 report by the women’s rights organization, approximately 5,500 women in Pakistan were killed in the name of “honor” between 2010 and 2017, and more than 15,000 cases of violence against women were reported in 2017 alone. However, these figures are likely to be an underestimation due to the stigma associated with reporting domestic violence, as well as underreporting.
Several factors contribute to the prevalence of domestic violence in Pakistan, including patriarchal social norms, economic inequality, and inadequate legal protections. Women and girls in Pakistan often have limited access to education, employment, and healthcare, which can exacerbate their vulnerability to violence. Furthermore, cultural practices such as forced marriage, dowry demands, and honor killings perpetuate violence against women and girls.
The Pakistani government has taken some steps to address domestic violence, including passing the Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Act in 2013. However, the implementation of this law remains inadequate, and there is a lack of resources dedicated to supporting victims of domestic violence.
According to the Mubashir Bhutta Human Rights Several NGOs and civil society organizations are working to combat domestic violence in Pakistan through advocacy, awareness-raising campaigns, and providing services such as shelters, legal aid, and counseling to survivors. However, much more needs to be done to address this pervasive and devastating issue.
Emotional Abuse
The victim of emotional abuse loses any feeling of self-worth as a result of constant insults, humiliations, or criticism. People find it difficult to understand this type of domestic violence because it frequently occurs in unstable partnerships.
Unless the abuse is so severe and pervasive that the relationship may be categorized as highly coercive, the majority of jurisdictions do not recognize emotional abuse as the basis for domestic violence prosecutions. In most cases, evidence of emotional abuse is needed to support a domestic violence claim in addition to evidence of physical, financial, sexual, or psychological abuse.
Sexual Assault
One frequent form of domestic violence is sexual abuse. In addition to sexual assault and rape, harassment also involves unwanted touching and other degrading behaviors.
Many victims are unaware of the broad definition of sexual abuse. For instance, you may have experienced sexual abuse if you have ever been pressured to refuse to use birth control (such as the pill, a condom, an IUD, etc.) or to have an abortion. Reproductive coercion is the term used to describe this type of maltreatment.
Financial Abuse
The least evident kind of domestic violence is financial abuse. It can take many different forms, such as when a husband forbids his wife from attending school or working outside the home. Financial abuse is common, particularly when there is little to no family support to stop it and families deposit their money into joint accounts that one person manages. Although it is a kind of dominance, financial abuse is less obvious than physical or sexual abuse.
The word “psychological abuse” refers to any action that intimidates, threatens, or instills fear. This conduct must be regular and significant. Typically, a single incident won’t be sufficient to trigger a domestic violence action. Psychological abuse, unless it is really severe, could not be sufficient on its own to launch a domestic violence case.