'Slapped, hair pulled, sexual assault': 37% of women experienced violence by husbands in Telangana
According to NHFS-5, 31 percent of married women have been slapped by their husbands, and four percent of ever-married women aged 18-49 reported that their husbands have physically forced them to have sex even when they did not want to in Telangana.
By Sumit Jha Published on 30 Nov 2021 6:45 AM GMT
Hyderabad: National Family Health Survey (NHFS-5) has revealed that 37 percent of women have experienced physical and sexual violence by their husbands in Telangana.
According to the survey, 31 percent of married women have been slapped by their husbands in Telangana.
Fifteen percent reported being pushed, shaken, or having something thrown at them. Ten percent experienced having their arm twisted or hair pulled, 8 percent being punched with a fist or something that could hurt her. Fifteen percent reported being kicked, dragged, or beaten up, and 2 percent reported that their husbands tried to choke or burn them on purpose.
World Health Organization (WHO) recognizes that violence against women, particularly domestic or spousal violence is a major public and clinical health problem and a violation of human rights, which also reflects the scale of gender inequality and discrimination. The consequences of violence on physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health often last a lifetime.
NFHS - 5 collected information on domestic violence from women aged 18-49, related to behaviors of their husbands that cause physical, sexual, or emotional harm, including physical violence, sexual coercion, emotional abuse, and controlling behaviors.
NFHS - 5 fieldwork for Telangana was conducted in 31 districts of the state from June 30, 2019, to November 14, 2019. Information was collected from 27,351 households, 27,518 women aged 15-49, and 3,863- men in the age group of 15-54.
Domestic violence
In Telangana, 36 percent of ever-married women aged 18-49 have experienced physical violence committed by their husbands, 5 percent have experienced sexual violence committed by their husbands, and 19 percent have experienced any form of emotional violence committed by their husbands.
Four percent of women experienced both physical and sexual violence. For ever-married women who experienced physical violence since age 15, the most common perpetrators were their current husbands.
Sexual violation inside the home
Four percent of ever-married women aged 18-49 reported that their husbands has physically forced them to have sex even when they did not want to, and two percent reported that their husbands forced them with threats or in any other way to perform sexual acts they did not want to perform.
Overall, 37 percent of ever-married women have experienced spousal physical or sexual violence from their current husbands or, if not currently married, from their most recent husbands. Few ever-married women (5%) reported that they have initiated violence against their husbands when they were not already beating or physically hurting them.
Violence during pregnancy
Four percent of women aged 18-49, who have ever been pregnant, have experienced physical violence during one or more of their pregnancies. Women with no schooling, women with 3-4 children, and women who are widowed, divorced, separated, or deserted are more likely to experience violence during pregnancy than women in any other group.
The underline of domestic violence
Physical or sexual violence prevails across all groups. Although spousal violence is much lower among more educated women. Out of a total around less than one-fourth (24%) of women who have at least 12 years of schooling have experienced emotional, physical, or sexual spousal violence.
The experience of spousal violence is higher among women in rural areas (46%) than in urban areas (29%); among divorced, separated, or deserted women (71%) than currently married women (38%); and among half (50%) of women who are employed for cash than women who are not employed (30%).
Husband's characteristics are also related to overall spousal violence (emotional, physical, or sexual). For instance, women are more likely to experience spousal violence if their husbands get drunk often (73%), display 5-6 marital control behaviors (72%), get drunk sometimes (48%), and if the husbands never attended school ( 53%).
Three-quarters of women (75%) of women, who say they are afraid of their husbands most of the time, have experienced spousal violence. NFHS-5 also observed that the contextual and intergenerational aspects of spousal violence are clear from the fact that women whose mothers were beaten by their fathers are more likely to be in abusive marriages themselves.
Over one-fourth (28%) of ever-married women age 18-49 who have ever experienced physical or sexual violence reported suffering from injuries from what their husband did to them. That proportion more than doubles to 61 percent among ever-married women who have experienced both physical and sexual violence.
Domestic violence injuries
The most common types of injuries among women who have experienced physical and sexual violence are cuts, bruises, or aches (56%); deep wounds, broken bones, broken teeth, or any other serious injury (16%); eye injuries, sprains, dislocations, or minor burns (23%); severe burns (22%).
Help-seeking
Only 21 percent of women aged 18-49 who have ever experienced physical or sexual violence sought help, while 8 percent never sought help but told someone. Less than three-quarters (71%) never sought help and never told anyone. Among women who sought help, the main sources of help were their own family (79%), their husband's family (18%), or a friend (9%). Only 8 percent sought help from the police.
