DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

ABSTRACT

Violence against women in the family has been a universal social problem that kills, tortures, and maims. Victims suffer violence in the hands of the man they trust and love and suffer physically and psychologically. They are unable to make their own decisions, voice their own opinions or protect themselves and their children for fear of further repercussions. They are denied their human rights and have their lives stolen from them by the continual presence of the threat of violence. Violence or at least the fear of violence is a part of every woman's life. If she is not a victim at one time or another, she knows someone who has been victimized lately. There has been a greater understanding of the problem, its causes, and consequences, and an international consensus has been initiated on the need to deal with the issue. Data analysis shows that women depend economically on men, as a result of marginalization in a ‘man's world', conventional family structure, and the treatment of domestic violence as a private matter serves to give impetus to the hydra-headed enigma.