Violence against Women and Girls

454 Pages·2014·8.5 MB·English

SOUTH ASIA DEVELOPMENT FORUM SOUTH ASIA DEVELOPMENT FORUM
V
iolence against Women and Girls: Lessons from South Asia examines the prevalence and factors
Violence against
V
associated with various types of violence against women and girls in Afghanistan, Bangladesh,
i
o
Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. It analyzes the nature of violence throughout
l
e
the life cycle and highlights gaps where intensive research or interventions might be undertaken. Analyses
n
of the most recent data reveal that South Asia has the world’s highest levels of excess female child c
e Women and Girls
mortality and child marriage. The prevalence of intimate partner violence also remains unacceptably high,
a
particularly for married adolescents. Reliable data are limited for other forms of violence. g
a
The number and intensity of efforts to address violence in the region are truly impressive and yield i
n
promising practices for future action. Important challenges remain, however—particularly the need for s
t
more rigorous evaluation and the urgency for actors to engage across forms of violence and to more W
Lessons from South Asia
systematically involve men and boys in addressing this violence. Different stakeholders have distinct roles o
m
to play if the region is to make progress in violence prevention and response, including increased funding
e
of programs and evaluations. On the whole, strengthening the effectiveness, reach, and sustainability
n
of interventions will involve multifaceted coordination across all actors on the ground. This book offers a
evidence-based recommendations for these actors and for coordination among them. n
d

G Jennifer L. Solotaroff and Rohini Prabha Pande
“This book makes a huge contribution to the field of violence against women and girls. i
r
It synthesizes an enormous amount of information, including extensive consultations with l
s
stakeholders from governments and civil society in South Asia. Most important, it provides an
excellent set of recommendations that clearly outline how governments, donors, civil society, L
e
and the private sector can contribute to ending violence against women by addressing gender s
s
inequality and discrimination.” o
n
— Dr. Mary Ellsberg, Founding Director, Global Women’s Institute, The George Washington University s

f
r
“Structural gender inequality is deeply embedded in South Asian societies, leading to different o
m
manifestations of violence against women across their lives. And this violence continues

S
despite laws and policies and various other attempts to address it. Hopefully this book will
o
lead to a more nuanced understanding of this problem and help to develop contextually u
t
appropriate interventions to address it.” h

A
— Dr. Abhijit Das, Director, Centre for Health and Social Justice, India, and Founding Member, s
i
Men’s Action for Stopping Violence Against Women (MASVAW) a
“Repeatedly, violence against women has been identified as the biggest issue faced by women
in Pakistan. This book captures the patterns of the problem across South Asia, illustrating
that the problem is not rooted in the traditions of just one religion or one country, but, rather,
in centuries-old systems of patriarchy that make women second-class citizens. The case
studies of success provided in the book build hope for the possibility of a more balanced
and just society in the future.”
S
— Dr. Fouzia Saeed, women’s rights activist and author of Working with Sharks (2013) o
l
o
t
a
r
o
f
ISBN 978-1-4648-0171-6 f
a
n
90000 d
P
a
n
d
9 781464 801716 e
SKU 210171

Violence against
Women and Girls

SOUTH ASIA DEVELOPMENT FORUM
Violence against
Women and Girls:
Lessons from South Asia
Jennifer L. Solotaroff and Rohini Prabha Pande
© 2014 International Bank for Reconstruction and Development / The World Bank
1818 H Street NW, Washington DC 20433
Telephone: [phone]; Internet: www.worldbank.org
Some rights reserved
1 2 3 4 17 16 15 14
This work is a product of the staff of The World Bank with external contributions. The findings,
interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this work do not necessarily reflect the views of The World
Bank, its Board of Executive Directors, or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not
guarantee the accuracy of the data included in this work. The boundaries, colors, denominations, and other
information shown on any map in this work do not imply any judgment on the part of The World Bank
concerning the legal status of any territory or the endorsement or acceptance of such boundaries.
Nothing herein shall constitute or be considered to be a limitation upon or waiver of the privileges and
immunities of The World Bank, all of which are specifically reserved.
Rights and Permissions
This work is available under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 IGO license (CC BY 3.0 IGO) http://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo. Under the Creative Commons Attribution license, you are free
to copy, distribute, transmit, and adapt this work, including for commercial purposes, under the following
conditions:
Attribution—Please cite the work as follows: Solotaroff, Jennifer L., and Rohini Prabha Pande. 2014.
Violence against Women and Girls: Lessons from South Asia. South Asia Development Forum. Washington,
DC: World Bank. doi:10.1596/978-1-4648-0171-6. License: Creative Commons Attribution CC BY 3.0 IGO
Translations—If you create a translation of this work, please add the following disclaimer along with the
attribution: This translation was not created by The World Bank and should not be considered an official World
Bank translation. The World Bank shall not be liable for any content or error in this translation.
Adaptations—If you create an adaptation of this work, please add the following disclaimer along with the
attribution: This is an adaptation of an original work by The World Bank. Responsibility for the views and
opinions expressed in the adaptation rests solely with the author or authors of the adaptation and are not
endorsed by The World Bank.
Third-party content—The World Bank does not necessarily own each component of the content contained
within the work. The World Bank therefore does not warrant that the use of any third-party-owned
individual component or part contained in the work will not infringe on the rights of those third parties.
The risk of claims resulting from such infringement rests solely with you. If you wish to re-use a component
of the work, it is your responsibility to determine whether permission is needed for that re-use and to obtain
permission from the copyright owner. Examples of components can include, but are not limited to, tables,
figures, or images.
All queries on rights and licenses should be addressed to the Publishing and Knowledge Division, The World
Bank, 1818 H Street NW, Washington, DC 20433, USA; fax: [phone]; e-mail: [email protected].
ISBN (paper): 978-1-4648-0171-6
ISBN (electronic): 978-1-4648-0172-3
DOI: 10.1596/978-1-4648-0171-6
Cover photo: High school students leaving school in Suapur, Bangladesh. © Scott Wallace / World Bank. Used
with the permission of Scott Wallace / World Bank. Further permission required for reuse.
Cover design: Critical Stages
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Solotaroff, Jennifer L.
Violence against women and girls : lessons from South Asia / Jennifer L. Solotaroff and Rohini Prabha
Pande.
pages cm. — (South Asia development forum)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4648-0171-6 (alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-4648-0172-3 (electronic : alk. paper)
1. Women—South Asia—Social conditions. 2. Girls—South Asia—Social conditions. 3. Women—Violence
against—South Asia. 4. Girls—Violence against—South Asia. I. Pande, Rohini (Rohini P.) II. World Bank.
III. Title.
HQ1735.3.S63 2014
305.40954—dc23 2014026057
South Asia Development Forum
ome to a fifth of mankind, and to almost half of the people living in poverty,
H
South Asia is also a region of marked contrasts: from conflict-affected areas
to vibrant democracies, from demographic bulges to aging societies, from
energy crises to global companies. This series explores the challenges faced by a region
whose fate is critical to the success of global development in the early 21st century, and
that can also make a difference for global peace. The volumes in it convey in an acces-
sible way findings from recent research and lessons of experience, across a range of
development topics. The series is intended to present new ideas and to stimulate debate
among practitioners, researchers, and all those interested in public policies. In doing so,
it exposes the options faced by decision makers in the region and highlights the enor-
mous potential of this fast-changing part of the world.
v
South Asia Region, The World Bank
Source: World Bank (IBRD 40868, April 2014).
Contents
Foreword xv
Acknowledgments xvii
About the Contributors xxi
Executive Summary xxv
Abbreviations xxxv
1 Introduction and Overview 1
Why This Report and Why Now? 2
Scope of the Report 4
Organizational Framework: Life-Cycle and
Ecological Approaches 6
Estimating the Costs and Consequences of
Violence across Levels of Society 14
Summary of Data and Methods 19
Outline of Chapters 20
Notes 20
References 20
2 Patterns of Violence against
Women and Girls in South Asia 27
Excess Female Child Mortality 28
Child Marriage 30
Intimate Partner Violence within Marriage 34
Forms of Violence That Need More Research to
Establish Prevalence 41
vii
viii l CONTENTS
Disclosure and Care-Seeking across Forms of
Violence Faced by Women and Girls 58
Understanding the Violence That South Asian
Women and Girls Face 60
Notes 60
References 61
3 What Underlies Violence against Women
and Girls in South Asia? 73
Socioeconomic and Demographic Changes 73
Government, Religious Institutions, and Legal Systems 78
Social Norms and Gender Relations 85
Risk Factors for Violence against Girls and
Adolescents in the Ecological Framework 88
Risk Factors in Marriage: Dowry Violence
and Intimate Partner Violence 94
Risk and Protective Factors for Violence
That Is Not Limited to a Particular Life Stage
or Marital Status 105
Summary and Conclusion 119
Notes 120
References 121
4 Learning from Interventions to Address
Violence against Women and Girls 137
Implications of Recent Economic, Political, and
Social Changes for Violence 138
Methods to Identify and Definitions of Targeted
Interventions 140
The Landscape of Evaluated Interventions in
South Asia: A Summary 144
Preventing Excess Female Child Mortality 146
Preventing and Responding to Abuse Faced
by Girls throughout Childhood 151
Preventing Child Marriage 153
The Importance of Birth Registration to Address
All Forms of Violence against Girls 158
Opportunities, Gaps, and Challenges in Addressing
All Forms of Violence against Girl Children 158
Addressing Domestic and Intimate Partner
Violence within Marriage 159