Women's Abuse In Third World Countries: Lack Of Protection Laws

The abuse of women in third world countries is a terrible and dreadful deed. What exactly is the abuse of women? Women abuse is not just domestic or physical; oppression, isolation, and discrimination are also forms of women abuse. According to the United Nations, 1.5 to 3 million girls and women die due to gender-based neglect, domestic, and sexual abuse. Women can go through several forms of violence in a lifetime. For example, ' Abortion of female fetuses, female infanticide and neglect, female genital mutilation, rape, sexual assault, coercive sex, trafficking, sexual harassment, domestic violence, dowry abuse and murders, widow inheritance, and ‘ritual cleansing', abuse of the elderly'.

Women’s Rights by Geraldine Terry lists only some of the ways that violence against women is present.' The UN defined violence against women quite broadly, as an act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual, or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion, or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life'. More specifically, in third world countries like Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and other countries women abuse is bad and often cannot be fixed. What is worse is that women experience mental illness, children are harmed mentally and physically, and often women cannot escape the continuous torture and abuse that women face in third world countries.

To begin with, women abuse is more likely to happen in third world countries and can lead to mental illness and develop physical impacts in a woman's life. On top of that, another factor to consider is the impact that the abuse of women has on the person's family and children. Last but not least, it is difficult for women to escape the abuse that they face. This difficulty is caused by social and political implications along with the lack of resources in third world countries. As the world keeps developing, it is lamenting to see that women still face difficulties in third world countries.

To start with, a higher incidence of women abuse is more prominent in third world countries and can correlate to mental health issues and develop physical impacts. For example, Erika Klein explains what it is like to experience trauma as a survivor of sexual abuse. Klein writes down what it felt like to live on as someone who has been through such a traumatic experience, ' Depression felt normal to me, as did anxiety, and though I felt profoundly different from my peers, that was life as I had always known it'. Later in the article, Erika Klein goes on to explain that it is a much bigger scale than just one person, 'Statistics are more than just numbers. They are echoes of the unheard voices and untold stories of survivors across our nation and the world. Mothers and daughters are paying the price for our denial and refusal to look at the issues'. Klein explains that women and girls are suffering in these places because the rest of the world is in denial and refuses to talk about the issue. This also refers to third world countries.

For example, 'A recent study conducted in Pakistan outlined the numerous factors associated with depressive disorders among women, with marital and in-law conflicts amounting to close to 40 percent'. This is proof that such a large sum of women just in Pakistan have depressive or even suicidal tendencies due to abusive relations. According to the World Health Organization, ' Traumatic stress is thought to be the main mechanism that explains why intimate partner violence may cause subsequent depression and suicide attempts. Exposures to traumatic events can lead to stress, fear, and isolation, which, in turn, may lead to depression and suicidal behavior'. It is clear to see that women suffer mental health problems that can also lead to suicide because of the violence they face.

Another factor to consider is the impact women abuse has on a family and children. According to UNICEF, 275 million children are victims of violence at home. Young children could also fall into depression and start developing symptoms of anxiety, and even adapt abusive behavior in their adult life. In order for children to have a good life and future, it is important that children grow up in a safe and secure home. That means that the household should be free of violence and must have parents that love and protect them. Why? 'Several studies also reveal that children who witness domestic violence are more likely to be affected by violence as adults – either as victims or perpetrators'.

If children are exposed to and see violence in their household it is likely that the children will become either a victim of abuse or even become the abusers. How else does violence against women impact children? The abuse of women affects children in several ways. 'Children who have been exposed to abuse are likely to exhibit changes in behavior such as acting out, attention seeking, aggressive or passive behavior, and difficulty setting limits. “....Children are often aloof and sarcastic and can lose interest in school or other activities' (Genesis). A child reaction to abuse can be as little as slight changes in behavior or as gross as choosing to abandon important changes such as education. 'Children tend to feel responsible for violence toward themselves or their mothers and end up having difficulty trusting others in the future' (Genesis). This can lead to those children having low self-esteem among other mental difficulties. Children can also feel scared, angry, and even trapped because of the situation that the kids are in. It is sad that the world hardly recognizes that children can be the ones affected by domestic violence the most.

Last but not least, it is hard for women in third world countries to escape because of things like political and social implications and lack of resources in third world countries. One of the main reason women cannot escape from violence is that of the lack of laws protecting them. For example, countries like Kazakhstan, Yemen, Niger, and many more that have no laws against issues like sexual harassment and domestic violence. Also, women in third world countries do not get the resources women in the developing world do, for example, women in third world countries do not have the ability to go to shelters, instead, women have more restrictions.

For instance, a woman who wants to divorce or escape from an abusive relationship will be discriminated against, instead. Another factor which makes it hard for women to escape is the social implications women will have to face later. In any relationship, it is hard to leave behind a relationship because of the consequences that can come after. For example, breaking up a family is a major consequence; this is because children in the family will be with one parent and lack mentorship from the other. In third world countries, there's even more pressure on women since in some third world countries, if women leave their husbands women are no longer considered valuable and have no worth. Because of this, women often have no power to leave because they fear that society would perceive them in a negative way if they do so. Also, third world countries have no resources to help women that want to escape from violence like domestic abuse. In more detail, there are no resources such as shelters, therapists, doctors that are willing to help, and no legal protection for women who face domestic violence.

Taking everything into consideration, it is important that people know that the abuse of women is not just domestic. The abuse of women is everything from gender-based neglect to sexual abuse, and everything in between. The abuse of women is anything that hurts people because of the person's female gender and results in physical, sexual or psychological harm. The statements listed above explain the effects of the abuse and further explain why it is a bad thing. The abuse of women is a horrible thing; it is also an inhumane act, and women are hurt every day because of it. Women are mentally scarred and are motivated to commit suicide to escape the thing these women hate and fear the most because women in third world countries have no resources, and therefore have no form of protection against the horrible acts they endure. In addition to that, children who experience or witness abuse will be affected throughout their lives. Children's behavior and future will more than likely change for the worst. Kids who are trapped in a situation involving domestic abuse will face mental, emotional, and physical challenges.

Also, children that will have a childhood with only one parent and lack either a mother figure or a father figure in a child’s lifetime. Lastly, because political and social implications deprive women of the ability to get any help. More specifically, women are not supported socially; instead, when a woman leaves the husband that woman is discriminated and considered invaluable by society. So, they commit suicide to end the nightmare that women live in because the country the women lives in will not help, the woman's family won't help; instead, women who leave will be discriminated for leaving the head of the house, the men. Also, in most third world countries there are no laws that protect women from any form of abuse or violence, and there are no laws or resources that help a woman escape from abuse and or violence.

In conclusion, women abuse is bad because of the arguments listed above and for many more reasons that are not discussed in this essay. In the end, the abuse of women is something that people need to work on to make this world a better one. It is a necessity for the world to solve this problem to reach further prosperity as nations.

Citations

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