The Causes of Gender based violence.Part 1

According to The World Bank Group The numbers are staggering; 35% of women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence.

Globally, 7% of women have been sexually assaulted by someone other than a partner.

Globally, as many as 38% of murders of women are committed by an intimate partner.

200 million women have experienced female genital mutilation/cutting.

This issue is not only devastating for survivors of violence and their families, but also entails significant social and economic costs. In some countries, violence against women is estimated to cost countries up to 3.7% of their GDP – more than double what most governments spend on education.Failure to address this issue also entails a significant cost for the future.  Numerous studies have shown that children growing up with violence are more likely to become survivors themselves or perpetrators of violence in the future.One characteristic of gender-based violence is that it knows no social or economic boundaries and affects women and girls of all socio-economic backgrounds: this issue needs to be addressed in both developing and developed countries. Decreasing violence against women and girls requires a community-based, multi-pronged approach, and sustained engagement with multiple stakeholders. The most effective initiatives address underlying risk factors for violence, including social norms regarding gender roles and the acceptability of violence. When we consider a societal or community problem, it’s sometimes hard to see past the symptoms of that problem to get at the real cause.  It can be easier to deal with the concrete, immediate factors rather than the complex, far-reaching dynamics.  But to get to real change, we must address the underlying issues in order for conditions to improve. If we want to end gender-based violence, we must eliminate the root causes of that violence. 

Understanding root causes can be difficult, as it requires us to look beyond what we see in front of us and attempt to see the more complicated factors that are driving the problem.  Of course, an effective approach to a solution requires a two-pronged approach that addresses the immediate problem and looks at the root causes.  Some of the root causes of gender based violence include but are not limited to:

1.     Harmful traditional practices are forms of violence which have been committed primarily against women and girls in certain communities and societies for so long that they are considered, or presented by perpetrators, as part of accepted cultural practice. Harmful traditional practices are forms of violence which have been committed primarily against women and girls in certain communities and societies for so long that they are considered, or presented by perpetrators, as part of accepted cultural practice. Harmful traditional practices are forms of violence which have been committed primarily against women and girls in certain communities and societies for so long that they are considered, or presented by perpetrators, as part of accepted cultural practice.

The most common types  are :

·        Forced or early marriage so called 'honour' based violence.

·        Female genital mutilation.

·        Patriarchy.