77% disabled women, girls face physical violence

Islamabad : A survey on women with disability (WWD) shows that 77 per cent of such women and girls face physical violence and among them, 72 per cent never complained to anyone.

The survey was conducted for a research study supported by Federation Handicap International. The research is the first of its kind in Pakistan primarily because it focuses on women and girls with disabilities and the challenges they face because of their gender. The study frame included two cities of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Charsadda, Nowshehra) and Islamabad. The study was led by researcher and activist, Rabeea Hadi.

Around 28 per cent of respondents to the survey said that they have also faced gender based violence whereas only 1 per cent of the WDD acknowledged having faced mental and emotional violence. The discussions with WDD revealed that emotional abuse is rampant for disabled persons yet assumed as a natural and therefore not acknowledged as violence.

The research says that women and girls with disabilities are more vulnerable than other women and rarely report the violence that they face primarily because the perpetrators of violence are family members who are also the care givers.

It says that women and girls with speech impairments and intellectual disabilities are more susceptible to both physical and sexual violence because they are unable to identify the perpetrator.

Around 72 per cent of the women said that despite facing violence they have never complained to anyone about it while 20 per cent complained to the DPO and 8 per cent complained to the family yet no action was taken and the 38 per cent women who sought help were unable to get it.