Where is the safe place for a girl? Where can she seek help?

In the present condition, we have to take a major step to find out a proper way to reduce violence on women and girls who face violence through all stages of life from before birth to old age. Violence against women as well as gender based violence means the acts of violence are committed against women expressly because they are women.

It should take different strategy to prevent each types of violence. In our country, approximately 23 kinds of violence occur in out of family and inside of family. Outside violence’s are Eve teasing, Rape, Acid throwing, Harassment, Exploitation, Kidnap, Kill, Human trafficking, psychological and religious or social violence. Inside family violence are Child marriage and forced marriage, Discrimination, Dowry, Inequality, domestic violence, Torture, Rape, Physical abuse, Human right violation, Deprivation and unwilling to support, even before birth of a female child, she get abortion or discrimination. 

Out of family violence’s  : Rape is the most hateful criminal offence and assault. This violence can destroy a life of a girl. The Prevention of  Cruelty against Women and Children Act establishes the death penalty for the actual guilty of rape charges.

Eve teasing is open sexual harassment remains widespread and increasing trends of corrupted minded young generation  and  sometimes it turns to extreme violence.

Throwing acid to girls usually is undertaken as an act of revenge by a rejected suitor, following accusations of spousal infidelity or in response to any disputes. Crime Repression Act and Acid Control Act aims to stop acid attack for  disfiguring women, providing death penalty in extreme cases. Acid Survivors Foundation reporting acid attacks is increasing alarmingly.

Violence against women occurs as sexual harassment at offices in various way, in public and private sector office. Such as through promotion tape by the boss or by the colleague in exchange of cooperation, in film industries meaning to make her more frankly by director or actor.

Economic exploitation and labour exploitation to female worker by the authority of industries and physical harassment in workplace by bosses and male co-worker or colleagues, authority of industries are unwilling to take action for this kind of violence, as they think it does not have any impact on production,  Bangladesh Labour Act of 2006 enshrines the right to equal opportunity in employment and provide equal pay for work and raises minimum wage for garment workers, as the labour is available so they enforce girls to work in the pressure and they have no way to do any protest. No medical support, no mask, no maternity leaves, but these are always ready as official documents and in the time of inspection it is really ready. Labour act increased the amount of employer-funded paid maternity leave to sixteen weeks, but in most industries a female worker cannot get even a day maternity leave, because when they identify any women worker as pregnant, soon discharge her by any other excuse.

Sexual harassment at working places, office, in bus, train, launch, in school going way, in educational institutions and specially in coaching centre where schedule is not fixed and depend on the plan of tutor or to provide facility to attract male student and physical harassment to girls students by the corrupted minded teacher.

Sometimes disabled women are sexually abused by some persons who intentionally commit offences as they are women with disabilities. Many disabled women are thorn into a trap showing interest to get them married and fall into unavoidable situation and they are victimized by the sexual abuse. 

Extreme violence against women such as kidnap, kill after rape also happens more than previous time. Every day women, girls and children are become victim of cross-border humane trafficking for sexual slavery, selling or misuse and forced prostitution are often perpetrated by organized criminal networks.

Harmful customary and religious misinterpretations, practices and violence perpetrated against minorities. Some illegal religious fakir torture women on the plea of jene removal or super natural testament.

Women accused of sexual misconduct suffering physical and mental violence as the targets of vigilantism, including social exclusion, whippings and hilla or forced marriage, these have sometimes been at the instigation of local level religious leaders. Psychological violence very often come up from the family, relatives and common people. Society neglected women more than men irrespective of nation, race and religion as social in-justice. If a girl is raped, she gets stamped as a dhorshita and hateful to almost all, this social pressure on victim is so intense and serious revealed that very few women report about rape or any other sexual assault on herself.

Sexual crimes over the internet also have increased. A couple may have taken intimate pictures of each other when they were together in a relationship, but distributing these pictures online without the consent of the woman is abuse and a breach of trust which is one kind of harassment.

This all kinds of violence is happen outside of family by the corrupted minded persons of society. Thus women and girls are not safe out of family,  but they are not always safe in family too. Various types of violence, such as child marriage, dowry, discrimination etc occur inside of family.

Inside Family Violence: Childhood is the time before eighty age. But 74% of girls child had been married although remaining strong Child Marriage Restraint Act. Number of forced and early marriages is increased. Some international survey show about fifty percents girls between 15 and 19 years of age were married, divorced or widowed.

Dowry payment is illegal, but it is reported that it still occurs frequently. Women were more likely to experience domestic violence in cases where their family had agreed to pay a dowry. Sometimes beating or killing is happen for dowry. For the purpose to avoid high dowry costs, some mother strongly supported educating their daughters, but pressures remain to marry them early.

Domestic violence is most pervasive form of violence. Domestic violence can be physical attack or sexual violence. Almost 62% of married women get experienced family violence at the hands of a spouse or in-laws, women's social and economic circumstances may influence their vulnerability to domestic violence. Women with more education and income to be less vulnerable to domestic violence, many women believes or hope that having a dowry could strengthen a women's position in her conjugal life. Women who had a dowry agreement or had personal earnings that contributed more than nominally to the marital household is accepted more. Muslims, Hindus and Christians have separate laws on marriage, separation and divorce. In many family sole decision-making power or financial matter rely on sole power of husband.

A powerful man can married a girl and rape her with her consent, when her consent in the marriage has been obtained by threatening to kill or hurt her family, when the man knows that he is not really her husband in mind and she gives her consent thinking that he is the man to whom she believes she is lawfully married. This rape within marriages is not recognized. It is not considered as criminal offence. Any married woman cannot seek legal assistance if she is raped by her husband. A married woman is obliged to have sex, even if she is not willing, with her husband. Early marriage is rape according to the law, having sexual intercourse with a girl less than 14 years of age is also considered rape. Other domestic violence is abortion which is only legal to save the pregnant woman’s life, reproductive rights groups note that abortion is very difficult to obtain, and that large numbers of women die every year from unsafe abortions. There is evidence to suggest that Bangladesh is a country of low concern in relation to missing women and the situation is improving.

A girl face unavoidable and unknown situation in family by relatives such as uncle, grandpa etc and family related person such as driver, teacher or tutor get chance to create physical harassment the girls children, because of careless of parents.

According to muslin law, daughters inherit half as much as sons. as girls are not in the binding to pay for the family. Christians Succession Act provides for equal inheritance between sons and daughters. But it is customary for a woman not to claim her share of the family property unless it is given willingly. Women often surrender their right to property in exchange for the right to visit their parental home and seek their brothers’ assistance in cases of marital conflict.

Polygamy is legal in our country, but many consider the practice to be outdated and it is discouraged. So it is acceptable for a man to have more than one wife if he can maintain equality.

In many family teenage girls are undertaking more than 18 hours of domestic labour within the home, compared to .9% of boys, indicating preferential treatment towards sons in regard to the allocation of household chores.

In the family or in society the condition of disabled women and girls is more vulnerable. Disabled women and girls are abused in the family as well as in the society. Parents and, guardians and relatives generally use the disabled girls inside the house as servants in the interest of their family. Sometime they are being abused by other family members differently. Disabled Women are also refused the proposal of marriage due to their disabilities and large number of disabled women remain unmarried whole life, although some proposals get any acceptance, the guardians face a lot of problems of different type of dowry and unauthorized demand. If the bridegroom party fails to fulfill the demands or pay for the dowry then disabled wife is seriously tortured and divorced by her husband.

Disabled women are generally denied access to schooling and other educational opportunities. They do not have any scope to go in front of the relatives or any visitor in the family.

Many disabled and distressed girls don’t have access to need based health facilities of health support family health care. In the family they are also deprived of basic medical treatment and in many cases they are neglected to have mostly necessary treatment for their reproductive health and for other care for which they suffer from various chronic disease and malnutrition and ultimately they fall in great difficulty even one time they fall in the lap of death.

Disable girls are deprived of their basic rights in the family and society, In maximum time they are kept hidden by the household members or parents inside the house, left out and excluded from decision making, recreation and disabled women are extremely vulnerable, condition of distressed women are also very critical in society, these girls and women in rural areas are mostly deprived of their basic human rights

Worldwide Violence’s : In whole world many other dangerous violence happens to women and girls such as breast ironing,  bride burning,  dating abuse, dowry death, honor killing, female genital mutilation, cutting, female infanticide, foot binding, force feeding, forced abortion, forced pregnancy, forced prostitution, murder of pregnant women and sati violence against prostitutes,  campus sexual assault, mass sexual assault, rape by deception corrective date, gang genocidal in war, marital prison statutory, sexual slavery, prosecution of gender targeted crimes, coercive use of contraceptives, female infanticide, prenatal sex selection, obstetric violence,  mob violence, harmful customary or traditional practices such as honor killings, female genital mutilation, marriage by abduction,  violence carried out, perpetrated or condoned by the state such as war rape, sexual slavery during conflict, forced sterilization, forced abortion, violence by the police and authoritative personnel, stoning and flogging etc.

Violence is in every place, in our country, in all over the world, in everywhere. Where is the safe place for a girl? Where can she seek help? Is all the brothers of this country are unable to safe their sisters from the hands of beasts.

Request to all : So I request to all real honest person, Civil Society Organizations, national and international donor agencies, governmental and non-governmental organization to provide necessary support to create a strong mechanism and action plan for fighting against violence and create a safe land for girls, women and children.

Causes of Violence: Now we can try to find out the Causes of violence and analysis the context in the perspective of our county. At first we think what about law? We have good law, but only the laws is not sufficient to give proper legal support to women and girls victim. If we analysis the present laws is in favour of women and girls, it does not work properly due to weak administrative systems and leaking of proper information. And victims are not able or not eager to seek justice by law for much reason.

It is difficult to prove rape in court. The victims know that despite all their efforts, justice will elude them. Women are also unaware of their rights and are therefore victimized. Apparently, victims feel it is better to be silent and get on with life keeping a very low profile. A rape case will move on despite lack of evidences. The immediate forensic examination will be good enough proof of her allegation. But fare, shock and financial condition does not allow her or her family to take immediate action. They think it is better to remain salient. A rape victims can seek ASK, BLAST or BNWLA for legal support. But she cannot cope with the judicial procedure because of not having psychological, physical and financial support.

Violence against women is the most pervasive human rights violation that we find regularly. We are getting this message of violence in the news paper or TV and sometime we observe in practical environment. The news in media does not provide any proper action. The law enforcement agency does not or cannot work properly due to  much reason. Why they do not take action against a rapist. The law enforcers are not aware of their duties and lack of coordination further creates problems for the victim. The inaction and corruption of some officer of law enforcement agencies and their reluctance to investigate or arrest the accused also contribute to the continuing crime of violence against women.

Violence by political influence or power, administrative failure and lack of social resistance and implementation of laws are some reasons that lead to the perpetrators going free. Due to a weak criminal justice system, insensitivity, corruption, wrong post-mortem reports the judicial procedure is hindered. Though a deep rooted patriarchal mindset and lack of awareness is behind violence, non implementation of laws is also instigating these violence.

The laws have proven difficult to enforce in rural areas. Victims of rape face severe social stigma where in majority cases victims are treated as the guilty party by the police.  As a result a majority of victims or their families do not seek justice and try to hide incident.

Violence against women is not well documented, specific risk factors, particularly those that can be affected by policies and programs are not well understood. Particularly intimate partner violence and sexual violence against women crate major public health problems and violations of women`s human rights. Violence can result in physical, mental, sexual, reproductive health and other health problems and may increase vulnerability to HIV.

Risk factors for being a perpetrator include low education, exposure to child maltreatment or witnessing violence in the family, harmful use of alcohol, attitudes accepting of violence and gender inequality. Risk factors for being a victim of intimate partner and sexual violence include low education, witnessing violence between parents, exposure to abuse during childhood and attitudes accepting violence and gender inequality.

In high-income settings, school-based programmers to prevent relationship violence among young people or dating violence are supported by some evidence of effectiveness. In low-income settings, other primary prevention strategies, such as microfinance combined with gender equality training and community-based initiatives that address gender inequality and communication and relationship skills, hold promise.

In domestic violence among women, as it is widely tolerated and both women and men consider violence to team women and their families. When a women deserves to be beaten, many men agreed that a women should tolerate violence in order to keep her family together. Women themselves are likely to report acceptance of domestic violence, many women believe that a husband is justified in beating his wife.

It is a cause and a consequence of inequality and discrimination, whether in law or practice, especially as it substantively impacts the effective exercise of citizenship rights by women. Situations of conflict, post conflict and displacement may exacerbate existing violence and present new forms of violence.

According to the US Department of State, police often fail to adequately investigate reports of rape or allow perpetrators to be freed after the payment of a fine. According to law, rape victims must file police reports and obtain medical certificates within 24 hours of the crime in order to press charges, which prevent most rape cases from reaching the courts. The government is trying their best but unable to ensure the physical security of women, in particular girls and poor women’s limited access to the justice system for the social stigma or fear of further harassment.  Migrant women, refugee women, dalit women, disabled women and girls living on the streets are even more vulnerable to this violence.

What should do : If we read news of violence and forget because of our business and it is not possible for anyone to remember every incidence and monitor. If all the incident of violence is clearly noted by women organization, monitored and evaluate from the point of view and justification of law implementation for the favour of victim, no one can dare to come forward to harm any girls or women. A project can monitor evaluate and a strong mechanism which will bring the information as an indication in front of law enforcing agency as well as government, it will directly impact as major element to prevent and reduce violence against women and girls.

In this aspect we should design new action plan to prevent and reduce the violence. To bring positive changes in the society in different social norms and attitude, It should enforce to implement law against gender based violence. The project to be possible to bring about positive changes in most of the cases of violence to provide the opportunities to fulfill their minimum basic rights in the human rights perspective. Both government and non-government institution should come forward to work in partnership to deliver coordinated services and respond effectively to ending violence, reducing violence improve women’s lives and facilitate increased access to social, economic and political agency.

The projects should support and provide information government to evaluate, strengthen and reorganize existing services through the adoption and roll out of guidelines, protocols and databases that support case management for monitoring and evaluation so that no one commit violence against women and girls.

Project approach should link in with whole of government and the CSOs and private sector to secure coordination. Publicly acknowledge the commitment of provincial authorities to support each other to address the violence. Provide monthly reports to government to prepare them for reports with possibly high level of reported cases and feedback on official interventions. Motivation for law and order enforcing authority for ensuring step for quick response during incident of violence, sensitize for long term cultural reforms as negative things which discriminate women, environmental reforms to ensure secure and free and fare environment for women, motivate the authority to establish new victim support centre according to the density of the population,  motivate justice system reform as to set law and quick justice system, once offenders offence established, arrange dialogued to set media and education to mindset change so that women and girls are not to be considered weak or neglected citizen, motivate to establish human right act ensure as it works in all section as it is the right of every citizen, arrange field based research and evaluation process and take action for practical solution, set up bill board on monitoring reports which will remind the authority to take action on the previous unsolved incidents, action plan for rape survivors and females at high risk of sexual violence in crisis. Risks and needs of offenders should addressed and mitigated, intensity of treatment providers have a victim advocate working with their program. Minimizing risks and monitoring safety of an antenatal care intervention to mitigate domestic violence and to elicit broad support for projects. Provide regular monitoring reports and impact assessments to highlight the importance of the SMS incident reporting mechanisms. Establish the system across different vulnerable locality to provide ongoing mentoring and support and enhance networking. Sustainability is a key concept driving the design and roll out gender based violence project.

Now, We should take two type of step.  Primary steps and Long term steps. Primary works will be continuing until the long term social change.

Primary work : Teaching self depending method and training to women and girls, providing defensive materials, keeping religious or cultural dress, move avoiding risk such as in nights, safe coaching centre system identification for female students, photos or personal information and communication providing secure method in social networks, to organize local anti eve-teasing team of students, create list of eve teaser in the community, awareness raising and technical programs, psychological and organizational support to victim, increase the support centre, provide official representative and financial cost support to reach in the formal justice system, utilizing international donation properly for the research and  motivational program and organize, properly and honestly utilize local donation or educational institutional donation for the access to the legal support for the disabled and distressed women victim. Combine project with the help of university students and local donor and Ngos. Martial art training, bearing safety knife, dress code, motivation to reduce religious misinterpretation such as hilla marriage, awareness raising to don’t think victim guilty, don’t provide shelter rapist in family and to motivate consultant make some project well rich in bangle and include reality to local donor and gradually provide the information of real situation to foreign donor, motivate mother in laws to consider house wife as their daughter, which she hope in laws house of her daughter. Provide organizational support to a victim when she is in fare, shocked and  financial condition does not allow her or her family to take immediate action and they think to remain salient is better.

Long term work : The percentage of violence against women is depending on the surrounding environment, mindset, culture,  law and order situation including justice systems. This violence cannot be addressed in isolation of context, including the historical, political, economic, social and cultural contexts and realities that impact and shape the lives of women and girls. Awareness raising program to remove negative gender attitudes towards women. Motivation program to remove apparent inability or unwillingness of the state to bring to justice perpetrators of gender-based crimes. Nationwide strong and deep survey, data analysis, research, monitoring, coordination and evaluation can be change the conditions.

Core Challenges: In this major work the core challenge are enabling environment, political impact and issue, no political support, no formal commitment between local authorities to support and fund for capacity building and mentoring across their borders, some officers of relevant ministries do not commit data information and different vulnerability like ignorance, neglect, superstition and lack of accessibility in spite of having industrialization. The people do not have proper idea about the women rights and opportunities. In distressed, disabled and low income community girls are neglected in the family as well as in the society. Community level and national mechanism not guided by evidence of demand or size of the problem or strategic planning and budgeting.

Positive aspect : Some positive aspect we notice that Education for female students facilities is being increased and we get its result. It a good aspect of Bangladesh. It is also good women’s access to financial services, including bank loans and other forms of credit is limited. Most women lack the collateral to receive loans from banks. Low literacy rates also hamper women’s access to the formal financial sector. Recently 60 one-stop crisis cells were established at local hospitals for mobilizing the various services within and outside the hospitals for women and children victims of violence by government and that Bangladesh police has established two victim support enters to provide various services in collaboration with  NGOs as well as a National Helpline Centre for Violence Against Women and Children.  Although the numbers of shelters and crisis centers are inadequate to deal with the extent of the needs of victims of gender based violence, but its a initiative.  Directorate of Women's Affairs has launched National helpline centre for violence against women and children in Bangladesh 24 four hours support centre. National law are in favour girls and women. The Civil society, DPOs, NGOs, government and international community is trying at their best to provide any kind of support to reduce this violence.

To strongly fight women organization should established national and international co-ordination.  Some international women organization have been working to save girls and women from all types of violence. United nation also take some initiatives.

UN initiatives : UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women states that violence against women is a manifestation of historically unequal power relations between men and women and violence against women is one of the crucial social mechanisms by which women are forced into a subordinate position compared with men. United Nations  Development Fund for Women UNIFEM is to reduce violence against women. It find at least one out of every three women around the world has been beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused in her lifetime with the abuser usually someone known to her. The Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women Created 1993 for Women's rights.  25 November is the International day for the Elimination of Violence against Women  to stop all kinds of physical, sexual or psychological harm to women. UNICEF working for children, WHO  H4 Working together for Women’s and Children’s Health, UN Women, United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, Women's Aid Federation of England, Centre for Women's Global Leadership, The Commission on the Status of Women CSW or UNCSW, UNIFEM United Nations Development Fund for Women established in 1976, UN Women established in 2010, Women's Commission for Refugee Women and Children  Seeks to defend rights of refugee women, youth and children.

Women organization world wide to prevent violence : Some renowned International women organization is working to save girls and women such as International Council of Women contributing since 1888 as first international women's organization, then many international organization for women and girls found. Council of Women World Leaders  International Alliance of Women  working since more than hundred year, International Association of Women Police, International Women's Suffrage Alliance, Nobel Women's Initiative founded by women Nobel Peace Prize winners, Sisterhood Philanthropic organization, Quota International working to empowering women, children, deaf, hard-of-hearing, and speech impaired since 1919, Relief Society Worldwide charitable and educational organization of LDS women, Soroptimist International, Worldwide service-organization for women founded in 1921, Third World Organization for Women in Science, Women's Environment & Development Organization, Advocates women’s equality in global policy, Women's International Democratic Federation, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom WILPF, Women's peace movement created in 1915, Women's World Wide Web (W4) is empowering women and girls around the world, World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts since 1928,  Zonta International, Women's Refugee Commission, Younger Women's Task Force, Zeta Phi Beta sorority in 1920, I have done work with some international organization such as Associated Country Women of the world ACWW, Mama Cash MC, Global Fund for Women GFW are contributing in this sector.

Women organization in our country to prevent violence : In Bangladesh many government institutions and non government organizations, and women organization working to reduce violence against women, such as, Ain o Salish Kendra ASK, Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust  BLAST, Bangladesh National Women Lawyers Association BNWLA, Student Legal Aid Forum SLAF, Women and child affairs department of social ministry, Bangladesh Directorate of Women's Affairs, Namati, Disabled Women Development Organization DWDO, Magura Women Development Organization MWDO, Thengamara Mohila Sobuj Songo TMSS, NFAVH, Disabled Child Foundation DCF, Women Disabled Development Foundation WDDF, Seba Disabled Women Parisher, Norshindi district, Hope Disabled  Woemn Parished, Faridpur district, Songhoti Disabled Women and Children Development Organization, Sirajgonj district, National Council of Disabled Women NCDW and some other women organizations is working for reducing women violence, BCHRD say to develop an Alliance and network and to create a national and international network among NGOs or INGOs for early intervention.

Furthermore : It should be in work plan to develop innovative research for the protection and fulfillment of human rights, including sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights SRHR, improving access to family planning, reducing maternal mortality and eliminating harmful practices. So many issues are remain to be addressed, such as equality and empowerment, together with development partners to eliminate barriers in access to knowledge and services, poverty and sustainable development, assuming the nature of sustainable development at the global, regional, national and sub-national levels, advocacy and policy dialogue, capacity development of Governments and intergovernmental bodies to overcome duty bearers, play a central role in assuring accountability and affordability of services, Service providers must ensure that integrated high quality services are available to all women and girls, civil society organizations CSOs should have proper Theories of change for prevention of Violence against women VAW as well as Gender Based Violence GBV and Program of Action POA, to fight against  HIV and AIDS,  ensuring Minimum Initial Service Package MISP, to the way of Millennium Development Goal MDG, Agenda-2030 or SDGs, all Civil society organizations must participate to give voice to communities and to help monitor for actively supporting the participation of women in MDGs, disadvantaged communities in the discussions, ensure the development strategies, increased national capacity to design and implement community and school based education and training program to prevent, reduce and stop violence against girls and children, to promote human rights and gender equality and to provide them with safe and supportive networks to advance their education and life skills, prevent pregnancy, protect them from HIV and violence and improve their economic skills to help access better opportunities within development and humanitarian settings.

I again request to all concerned, Civil Society Organizations, national and international donor agencies, governmental and non-governmental organization to provide proper support to create a strong mechanism and action plan for fighting against violence and make this earth safe for every girls, women and children.

Heartiest thanks and gratefulness to Sumona Ireen, Ishrat Khan, Luna Sharma,  Halima Akhari, Nazma Begum, Ruma Islam, Shahnaz Sharmin, Dalia, and Shmapa  for contribution and providing  valuable support,  take time for revision, edition,  selection photos, collection of data  to  finalize the article . Also thanks to Md. Abdul Motaleb and Shafiur Rahman for support in the prevention program of violence against women.