Torture of Women a Worldwide Phenomenon

Amnesty International released two new reports this week showing that women worldwide are tortured and abused both by relatives and by government officials, including police. In “Broken Bodies, Shattered Minds,” Amnesty International asserts that “[t]orture is fed by a global culture which denies women equal rights with men, and which legitimizes violence against women.” The report confirms that women in every country are beaten and raped by husbands and boyfriends, and that women in poor countries often suffer violence after being sold for their labor, traded into marriage, or forced into sex-trafficking networks. 20 percent of women in the U.S., the report says, have been physically or sexually assaulted. The report was released to coincide with International Women’s Day tomorrow, and it reveals that many governments fail to protect women and girls from torture and abuse. In fact, women in many countries suffer violence from armed groups, police, and other government agents.

Another recent Amnesty International Report on incarcerated women reveals that many states in the U.S. do not protect inmates from sexual abuse, applying different standards to prison employees and often holding the prisoner responsible for her attacker’s behavior. An article in the recent issue of Sojourner reveals that inadequate medical care is another problem facing women in prison. At the Central California Women’s Facility, for example, at least nine recent inmate deaths were caused by medical neglect.

Media Resources: Washington Post and Associated Press – March 7, 2001 and Amnesty International Website and Sojourner Vol. 26, No. 7 – March 2001

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