Gender Violence

perspective of
Bangladesh
Submitted to:
Sujit Kumar
Datta
Assistant
Professor
Department Of
International Relations
University Of
Chittagong

Submitted by:
Shahrukh
Hossain
2nd Year
B.S.S(Hons)
ID
Num:13406105
Department Of
International Relations
University Of
Chittagong
Shahruk Hossain

Gender and Violence Perspective

of Bangladesh
Gender based violence is a violence that is directed against a
person basis on gender. It is constituted as a breach of the
fundamental right to life, liberty, , security, dignity equality
between women and men ,non discrimination and physical and
mental integrity.
Gender and violence definition:
Sometimes it is hard to understand exactly what is meant by
the term "gender", and how it differs from the closely related
term "sex".
"Sex" refers to the biological and physiological characteristics
that define men and women.
"Gender" refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviours,
activities, and attributes that a given society considers
appropriate for men and women.
To put it another way:
"Male" and "female" are sex categories, while
"masculine" and "feminine" are gender categories.
Aspects of sex will not vary substantially between different
human societies, while aspects of gender may vary greatly.

Gender: refers to the social attributes and opportunities

associated with being male and female and the relationships
between women and men and girls and boys, as well as the
relations between women and those between men. These
attributes, opportunities and relationships are socially constructed
and are learned through socialization processes. They are context/
time-specific and changeable. Gender determines what is
expected, allowed and valued in a women or a man in a given
context. In most societies there are differences and inequalities
between women and men in responsibilities assigned, activities
undertaken, access to and control over resources, as well as

decision-making opportunities. Gender is part of the broader

socio-cultural context. Other important criteria for socio-cultural
analysis include class, race, poverty level, ethnic group and age.

Violence: Violence is an expression of aggression. There can

be various reasons that cause this kind of behaviour. Various
unfavourable social situations or circumstances in life affect an
individual. The reaction to those situations is variable. Those who
are short tempered or unable to cope with the changing
environment find it hard to behave rationally. This frustration
comes out in the form of anger and violent behaviour. Though,
environmental factors are responsible but only to an extent.
Psychologists believe that violent traits are inherent in nature.
Hence genetic make-up does play a role.
Gender based violence: Violence is of several kinds. One can
exhibit violence in physical, Psychological, or sexual form or
simply by neglecting someone to the point of deprivation. The
extent of violence ranges from self, to family and friends, to
community and the largest expression is the entire war situation
between and/ or within the nations. Violence has affected
civilizations. It is evident from the historical facts that wars that
are the epitome of violence have ruined millions of lives. Those
who resort to violence justify their action by citing various reasons
but in the end it is only the personal perception that leads to such
kind of behaviour.
Violence is a social and health problem for all who experience and
witness it. Violence takes many forms, including:
Family violence, often referred to as domestic abuse, child
abuse, child maltreatment, spouse abuse, and wife battering
Peer group violence, which includes workplace violence,
school violence, gang violence, and bullying *

 Sexual violence, which includes rape * , date rape, marital

rape, intimate partner abuse, and child sexual abuse
Abuse of power, which includes mistreatment of children,
students, elders, people with disabilities, and others who are
smaller or less powerful than the abuser
Community violence, which includes assaults, fights,
shootings, homicides, and most forms of peer violence
Hate crimes and hate speech, which target victims based on
gender, age, race, ethnicity, religious belief, or sexual
orientation
Media violence, shown on television, in film, and in video
games.

Violence with household:

Recently, we have come to realize realize that our homes may be
as dangerous as our streets. Family violence in its various forms
spouse assault, elder abuse, sibling violence, child abuseis more
prevalent than the public or officials ever suspected. The National
Commission on the Causes and Prevention of Violence report
issued 23 years ago does not mention spouse assault in its
discussion on violent crime (Winslow, 1972). And although incest
has long been considered a crime (more against the natural order
than against the law), it has only recently been labeled a violent
crime justifying the intervention of the courts. On the terrain of
family violence, elder abuse is just being recognized as a
phenomenon and sibling violence remains largely invisible. Child
abuse has received the most attention, having been documented
since the 1950s. However, in common with other forms of family
violence, we know more about the barriers to accurately counting
it than we do about its rate and prevalence. Long considered

family matters rather than criminal matters, we are just beginning

to probe the causes and consequences of family violence and to
test the effectiveness of interventions designed to reduce its
severity, frequency, and impact.
In Bangladesh we find a comprehensive definition of household
violence.
Household violence is any physical and mental torture, sexual,
harassment of a women or child by any member of the family.
Any action that causes damage to life, health, security or any
organs of the body of a women or a child.
Forms of domestic violence in Bangladesh:
1. Dowry related violence: Dowry is being practiced
unabated, particular in rural areas of Bangladesh.
intimidation or physical forces.
2. Sexual abuse: It means any conduct of sexual nature
that abuses humiliates, degrades or otherwise violates
the dignity of the person aggrieved such as coerced sex
through
3. Economic abuse.
4. Rape: Rape is a type of assault involving sexual
intercourse by the perpetrators.
5. Psychological abuse: It means degrading conduct that
adversely affects or is likely to affect the psychological or
mental state of the person aggrieved.
6. Physical abuse: It means use of physical force against a
person that harms or restricts the person. Such as
slapping, beating.
7. Female child marriage and violence: In the rural areas we
see sizable number of female children between 13-15
years age get married because of the familys desires
and decisions.
8. Eve-teasing: Eve-teasing is a great is a great concern in
discussion of violence against women.

9. Acid violence: Acid violence involves throwing acid at a

persons body to harm and scare the person.

Gender spaces and violence:

Gender is a massive matter. Gender includes women, men and
children. All are the description of gender. Not only the female
gender faced violence men and children are also victim by gender
violence in different places. Women are faced violence because of
their physical weakness. In Bangladesh, the patriarchal capitalism
puts women in such a position within their communities that they
always remain subordinate under male domination and in many
cases this is reflected through violence (Hadi, 2009). Thus a
woman commonly has risk of experiencing domestic violence
within her family and it is not very surprising that the husband is
more likely to assault and/or batter his wife if she fails to meet his
dowry demands or to perform household work.
Given the scale of the human rights violation against women
within family this article concentrates on the socio-legal concerns
of domestic violence problem in Bangladesh. The study in the
beginning focuses on the socio-economic cost due to domestic
violence in Bangladesh and then finds out the domestic violence
prevention mechanisms through national law and international
human rights obligations of the state. Sometimes they faced
sexual, rape, dowry related violence in different places in
Bangladesh. Where they born, live, childhood, marriage
everywhere they faced it. Household or domestic violence is the
most common in this perspective.

Gender violence and mass media:

Gender violence is in overall a social problem. Feminist have long
argued that the issue is a public rather than a private matter.
Mass media has a dual effect on the problem of domestic
violence. Portraying domestic violence as solated incidents, while
on the other hand, making it a matter of public an policy debates.

Writer Selina Hossain, convenor of the organisation, presided over

the function titled 'Media can boost the image of women and
advance their cause' organised by the Gender in Media Forum.
Bangladesh National Report 2005 was released as part of the
World Mass Media Review Project 2005 at the function prior to the
International Women's Day.
New Nation Editor Mostafa Kamal Majumdar, Ananya Editor
Tasmima Hossain, Dil Manwara Manu, Nasimun Haq Ara Minu and
Ranjan Karmakar took part in the discussion while Prof Geeti Ara
Nasrin presented the Bangladesh Report.
Several female journalists narrated their experiences at work
places. Fouzia Khanam Eva read out a felicitation paper for the
female journalists and media employees for their contribution to
the challenging field.
A cultural function was also held at the last part of the
programme.
Effects: while there are some positive effects from mass media
portrayals of gender violence, according to the study television
and inter partner violence undertaken in 2009 .Some news
reports had the effect of promoting copy cat violence and killings.
The study concluded that reporters were in need of some kind of
guide on how inter-partner violence and murder was reported so
as to avoid the potential negative effects that reporting can have
on the public. The author argued that there is an evidence need
to develop a journalistic style in order to determine what type of
information is recommended due to the potential positive or
negative effects.
Considerations: Since the early 1990s feminist campaigns along
with mass media reports have turned domestic violence from a

private matter to a public matter. Mass media reports of partner

violence highlight the need for a change in attitude and perhaps a
change in the law as most domestic violence conviction rely solely
on victim. Testimonies according to Ferrand Bullock , the problem
is that the media reports domestic violence as isolated
incidents ,also most survivors have endured months if not year of
repeated acts of violence.

Gender violence and economic resources:

Societys resources and economic structure influence gender
stratification. Gender stratification refers to the unequal
distribution of wealth, power and privilege between the sexes.
The resources that are around to complete a job can
Effects: Due to economic abuse and isolation, the victim usually
has very little money of their own and few people on whom they
can rely when seeking help. This has been shown to be one of the
greatest obstacles facing victims of DV. And the strongest factor
that can discourage them from leaving their perpetrators.
In addition to lacking financial resources, victims of DV often lack
specialized skills, education and training that are necessary to
find gainful employment and also may have several children to
support. In 2003 Thirty-six major US cities DV as one of the
primary causes of homelessness in their areas, it has also been
reported that one out of every three homeless women are
homeless due to having left a DV relationship. If a victim is able to
secure rental housing. It is like that her apartment complex will
have zero tolerance, While the number of shelters and community
resources available o DV victims has grown tremendously. these
agencies often have few employees and hundreds of victims
seeking assistance which cause many victim to remain without
the assistance they need.

Socioeconomic Factors and Processes Associated With

Domestic Violence in Rural Bangladesh:

* CONTEXT: Although the pervasiveness of domestic violence

against women in Bangladesh is well documented, specific risk
factors, particularly those that can be affected by policies and
programs, are not well understood.

*METHODS: In 2001-2002, surveys, in-depth interviews and

small group discussions were conducted with married women
from six Bangladeshi villages to examine the types and severity of
domestic violence, and to explore the pathways through which
women's social and economic circumstances may influence their
vulnerability to violence in marriage. Women's odds of
experiencing domestic violence in the past year were assessed by
logistic regression analysis.

*RESULTS: Of about 1,200 women surveyed, 67% had ever

experienced domestic violence, and 35% had done so in the past
year. According to the qualitative findings, participants expected
women with more education and income to be less vulnerable to
domestic violence; they also believed (or hoped) that having a
dowry or a registered marriage could strengthen a women's
position in her marriage. Yet, of these potential factors, only
education was associated with significantly reduced odds of
violence; meanwhile, the odds were increased for women who
had a dowry agreement or had personal earnings that contributed
more than nominally to the marital household. Women strongly
supported educating their daughters, but pressures remain to
marry them early, in part to avoid high dowry costs.In rural
Bangladesh, women's social and economic circumstances may

influence their risk of domestic violence in complex and

contradictory ways. Findings also suggest a disconnect between
women's emerging expectations and their current realities.

Sex and Violence:

Sexual violence is any sexual act on attempt to obtain a sexual
act by violence on coercion, sexual comments on advances, acts
to traffic a person on acts directed against apersons sexuality.
Regardless of the relationship to the victim. It occurs in times of
space armed conflict situations in considered to be one of the
most pervasive and most common human rights violence.
Sexual violence is a serious public health problem and has a
profound short on long term impact physical and mental health
such as on increased risk of sexual and reproductive health
problem on an increased risk of suicide on HIV infection.
Modern occurring either during on several assault on as result of
an honor killing in response to a sexual assault in also a faction of
sexual violence. Though women a girls suffer disappointly.
Rape is one of the most brutal forms of violence against women in
Bangladesh. In a
culture that holds a woman's chastity sacred, rape crimes are
particularly injurious to a
woman's self-identity and social future as well as her physical and
psychological wellbeing.
The ever-increasing rate of rape crimes is an alarming
phenomenon and depicts
the diminishing value of women in society. It appears that
increasing numbers of men perceive women to be nothing more
than anobject used to satisfy one's sexual urges. Furthermore
there is evidence that men notonly rape women, but also

physically torture and murder the victims as well. In the last few
years, gang rape has become the prevalent form of rape in
Bangladesh.
Several men kidnap a woman, take her to an isolated place, and
take turns raping her.
This new trend is particularly alarming; first because the attack is
much more brutal
and damaging to a woman, and second because it shows that
rape is an accepted
activity in many men's peer groups. Men are discussing and
planning gang rapes with
their friends, no longer ashamed of their disgusting intentions. As
such, rape is being
normalized in the male community.
Gender violence and Victims:
A spectrum of people can largely victim to sexual violence. This
include women, men and children but also people who define
themselves in other terms as transgonden individuals.
Most research reports and studies focus on sexual violence in
armed conflicts. WHOs world report on violence and health lives
against females can die committed to-1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Rape with in marriage.

Rape by stronger.
Sexual abuse in children.
Forced marriage.
Systematic rape during armed conflict.

Gender violence and state:

Gender violence is happening all over the world. A study in
Bangladesh found that 42% of female reported experiencing
some types of violence with 19% reporting physical violence and
69% reporting psychological abuse.

Overall at least one out of three women around the world is

continuously becoming victim. Dhaka About 87 per cent of
Bangladeshi married women are abused by their husband, this
according to a nation-wide study conducted by the government
that involved a sample of 12,600 women. Only 8 per cent of
respondents said that they were never abused by their partner.
Titled Violence against Women Survey 2011, the research was
conducted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics in collaboration
with the United Nations Population Fund. The picture it paints is
alarming.
The survey found that domestic violence is present in most
Bangladeshi households. Last year, 77 per cent of respondents
admitted that they had been abused. Of these, 50 per cent had
sustained serious injuries, but one in three women refused to go
to hospital for fear of retaliation by the husband. Although not as
prevalent, the problem also affects Catholic women.
Lata Gomes (not her real name for security reasons)
told AsiaNews that "husbands consider us weak, and therefore
believe that they have the right to dominate us, even beating us. I
am a university graduate and I take care of our two children. But
my husband does not listen to me, and if I do not do what he
says, he beats me."
Overall though, violence is correlated to illiteracy and low levels of
education among women, she explained.
According to human rights organisation Bangladesh Mahila
Parishad (BMP), 5,616 cases of violence against women were
recorded in 2012, mostly rapes (904), followed by murders (900),
stalking and death as a result of stalking (662); dowry-related
murders (558), and suicide (435).

Conclusion:
The above discussion on violence against women in Bangladesh,
particularly domestic violence gives us a brief understanding of
the problem. It is found that different types of violence against
women are increasing. The overview of the scope and nature of
violence against women in Bangladesh leads
one to conclude that there are certain critical gaps in our
knowledge and policy. One
of the main reason is that the policy makers either do not feel it is
necessity, or do not
want to make public it.s failure to provide necessary protection to
women. As has
been mentioned earlier, that there is no systematic
documentation of women.s status
due to a lack of proper survey or research methods and the
tendency to concentrate
data collection in some areas at the cost of others. It is necessary
to turn one.s
attention to the creation of a systematic database. The purpose of
a database on
violence against women, whether gathered officially or
unofficially, is to assist
planning interventions to combat and prevent violence. Once a
systematic database is
built, it can be used to determine women friendly policies, proper
budget allocation,
enact or amend legislation, along with identifying funding
priorities and evaluation of
existing measures, steps, interventions and laws. Besides law and
order and criminal
justice administration, data on violence against women could also
be used by a range
of other agencies and academic disciplines committed to
improving the position of
women in Bangladeshi society. Recently eve-teasing has become
a serious social problem in the country. In order to arrest to this
increasing trend violence against women, proper intervention
strategies need to be undertaken.