Editor in Chief: Moh. Reza Huwaida Friday, March 29th, 2024

53pc of Afghan Women Experience Physical Violence

53pc of Afghan Women  Experience Physical Violence

KABUL - The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) on Wednesday said 53 percent of the Afghanistan women aged above 15 years endured physical violence.
Ahmad Jan Naim, MoPH planning and policy manager, told a press conference here that violence against women was not only a human rights issue, but also a health problem. “Violence damages women’s physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health,” he added.
The MoPH has so far registered 22,957 cases of violence against women pertaining to mental, physical problems, sexual assaults, sexual harassment and forced marriages, he said.
Naim said 61 percent of women did not seek solution to their problem while 56 percent faced physical and mental abuse, in most cases at the hands of their spouses.
Without providing specific figures, he said a large number of women faced violence during their pregnancy without reporting it to any organization.
Spozhmai Wardak, deputy women’s affairs minister, who attended the conference, said that despite having the elimination of violence against women law and anti- harassment law, her ministry alone could not deal with the matter.
“In Afghanistan, these laws are not followed as should be and it is because of low budget”, Wardak added.
She criticized the ways rights for women were sought and said women needed to be informed about their rights in order to get rid of violence and the media should also play their role in this regard.
On the other hand, Bannet Ndyanabangi, UNFPA representative in Afghanistan, said violence against women damaged women’s safety, dignity and moral and it paved the ground for further violence against the gender. (Pajhwok)