There are numerous causes of GBV and violations of SRHR. They include cultural and social norms which categorize males as aggressive, powerful, unemotional, and controlling and have to be accepted as dominant. Similarly, females are expected to be passive, nurturing, submissive, and emotional also reinforce women’s roles as weak, powerless, and dependent upon men. The socialization of both men and women has resulted in an unequal power relationship between men and women. This puts women in a vulnerable position where we cannot make any decisions even those affecting us directly.
Gender violence and SRHR violations threatens family structures. Children suffer emotional damage when they watch their mothers and sisters being battered; homes may break up, leaving the new female heads of household to struggle against increased poverty and negative social repercussions. Girls who have watched their mother’s decisions being made for them all their life will never stand out to speak for themselves thinking is the norm.
How GBV and SRHR violations manifest
Domestic violence, which typically occurs when a man beats his female partner, is the most prevalent form of gender-based violence and this occurs within the families and inside the homes. Violence against women within the general community includes battery, rape, and sexual assault, forced treatments and the exploitation and commercialization of women’s bodies. It also includes denial of information sexual reproductive health, force and coercion in choosing family planning methods and number of children to have. #16DaysofActvisim
