The Middle East has become a hotbed for violence against women. The Yemen Post released a study that found 2,694 incidents of physical and sexual abuse against women in 2007. Pakistan Daily reports that 278 incidents of violence against female citizens occurred in just three months, with a 36% rise in cases. Likewise, in Sudan and South Africa, women are being victimized. Even at home in America, 1/3 of all women will become domestic abuse victims.
In America, violence against females typically starts in the dating phase. Many women are drawn to men who appear confident, assertive and intensely interested in them. However, abusers are generally as passionate in anger as they are in love and quickly a romantic relationship becomes a continuous cycle of fighting and making up.
In some cases, the men are very remorseful when they see their partners taking steps to leave them, which is all part of their control, where women think, “Well he didn’t mean it. Deep down he must love me. I probably deserved it.” In other cases, the controlling behavior reveals itself in shoving, punching, slapping, pinching and physical violence.
There are often early warning signs such as not letting you hang out with your friends, calling frequently to find out where you are and who you’re with, telling you what to wear, having to be around you all the time, name-calling, jealousy or belittling you. Many women in these dysfunctional relationships are also victims of sexual abuse, which includes unwanted touching, forced sex, unprotected sex or forced sex acts that are hurtful or demeaning.
Men who assault women are manipulative by nature and may claim that they were “hurt in the past,” citing that as an excuse for their seemingly irrational jealousy. They often use tearful apologies or a whole host of other tactics to lure you back. In some cases, these tactics include forceful violence against women.
The road to ending violence against women is long and arduous. The key to lasting crime prevention is education and programs set up to offer women a way out. Owing in part to the rising number of shelters for battered women, the number of men killed by their wives or girlfriends has decreased because many women can now escape, yet unfortunately, the number of victimized women has remained the same. To combat the problem in America, groups like the National Organization of Women, the Department of Justice and the Center for Disease Control have added domestic violence to their agendas.