Domestic violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

is a pervasive and underreported problem.Report on Human Rights Practices 2006: Bolivia

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor The Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Affairs (DRL) is a bureau within the United States Department of State. The bureau is under the purview of the Under Secretary of State for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights. History ...

(March 6, 2007). ''This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...

.'' According to the Center for the Information and Development of Women (CIDEM), 70 percent of women suffer some form of abuse. CIDEM noted that their 2006 statistics "did not reflect the full magnitude of the problem of violence against women" and that "a great number of women" did not report the aggression they faced on a daily basis. The most exhaustive national survey on domestic violence conducted by the National Statistical Institute in 2003 showed 64 percent of women were the target of some form of

emotional Emotions are physical and mental states brought on by neurophysiology, neurophysiological changes, variously associated with thoughts, feelings, behavior, behavioral responses, and a degree of pleasure or suffering, displeasure. There is ...

, physical, or

sexual abuse Sexual abuse or sex abuse is abusive sexual behavior by one person upon another. It is often perpetrated using physical force, or by taking advantage of another. It often consists of a persistent pattern of sexual assaults. The offender is re ...

from their partner.

Domestic life in Bolivia

Violence between partners towards partners male or female is seen to most typically correlate to those who experienced abuse as a child. The abuse could have be sexual, mental, or physical, it could also be first hand witness. Meaning those who are abused in their adult life witnessed abuse to someone close associating the acceptance of this behavior. Side effects of violence that can be seen in women are frequent headaches, bursts of fear, hearing voices, seizures and/or convulsions. These side effects often lead to

suicidal Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or acad ...

thoughts resulting in increased rates. Bolivia contains a less than 1-100 ratio of citizens to

mental health Mental health is often mistakenly equated with the absence of mental illness. However, mental health refers to a person's overall emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It influences how individuals think, feel, and behave, and how t ...

providers. The small number of providers that are available are too expensive for average citizens, especially those who married for money. The informal living quarters in Bolivia add to the exposure of violence even years after the

urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation in British English) is the population shift from Rural area, rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. ...

of the country. The cities living quarters represent those of dwellings, self-built with no connection to basic services like water. These quarters are wide spread across the country due to overcrowding that has led to the countries high poverty rates.

Government action

In 2013, Bolivia passed a new comprehensive domestic violence law, which outlaws many forms of abuse of women, including

marital rape Marital rape or spousal rape is the act of sexual intercourse with one's spouse without the spouse's consent. The lack of consent is the essential element and doesn't always involve physical violence. Marital rape is considered a form of dome ...

. As of November 26, 2006, the police Family Protection Brigade had attended to 8,954 cases, as compared to approximately 5,200 in 2005, and 3,640 were cases of repeat offenders. It was estimated that most cases of domestic violence went unreported.

References

{{Domestic violence

Violence in Bolivia Violence against women in Bolivia

Domestic life in Bolivia

Government action

See also

References