Domestic violence an endemic in Pak, say activists

In Pakistan, 40 per cent of women experience physical violence or emotional abuse in their lifetime, studies reveal. Human rights activists in the country have termed domestic violence as an endemic, Pakistan based The News International Newspaper reported.
According to The News International, a patriarchal mindset, depleting economic situation, religious extremism, increasing population, discriminatory traditions and the impact of the climate crisis, all provide a perfect environment for domestic violence in Pakistani society. Divorced, widowed, and separated women in Pakistan have suffered more violence than married women. The violence is not confined to matrimonial relationships. According to the last Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) for Pakistan, 39 per cent of women aged 15-49, who had never been married, reported being subjected to Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) at some time. Only in 2021, 14,189 cases of gender-based violence were registered in Pakistan.
The National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR), recently, took notice of a murder of an eight-year-old girl in Gujranwala. She was tortured by her family and died of the injuries.
In another case reported to the NCHR Punjab office, a mother and a daughter living with in-laws after the death of the woman’s husband were reportedly sexually harassed and when they complained to the police they were both badly beaten up by their in-laws.
Meanwhile, the media recently reported that women in Pakistan’s Sindh province continue to remain unsafe, with several being abducted. And, in the latest incident, a 15-year-old girl was kidnapped from the Allahabad police station area of Larkana city.