In the world of work, people with disabilities face many challenges compared to normal people.
Two reports released today by the World Health Organization (WHO) note that older women and women with disabilities are at particular risk of abuse, but their situation is largely ignored by most global and country-level violence-related statistics.
Data released by Measuring Violence Against Older Women and Measuring Violence against Women with Disabilities show that gender-based violence is widespread among older women and women with disabilities. Women with disabilities are at greater risk of intimate partner violence than women without disabilities, and they are also at higher rates of pervasive sexual violence.
According to the report, intimate partner and sexual violence are the most common forms of gender-based violence globally, affecting about one in three women. In addition to these types of violence, older women and women with disabilities are also at specific risk and other forms of abuse, sometimes from caregivers or health professionals. These behaviors include coercive and controlling behaviors, such as refusal to provide medication, assistive devices, or other aspects of care, and financial abuse.
The report found that physical or intimate partner sexual violence remains the most commonly experienced form of abuse among women aged 60 and over. However, as partners age, physical or sexual violence gradually turns into psychological violence, including threatened abandonment and other controlling behaviors.
Alone
Older women and women with disabilities may be isolated when violence occurs, making it more difficult for them to escape and report abuse, the report said. Stigma and discrimination can further reduce access to services or information, or cause emergency responders to dismiss their descriptions of violence.
For older women and women with disabilities, their dependency and isolation are further exploited by their abusers, increasing their risk of abuse, the report notes. The report stresses that appropriate focal points should be identified through the health and care system so that all women who are victims of violence can receive empathetic, survivor-centred care.
According to WHO, much of the existing research on violence against women does not address older women and women with disabilities, which makes it difficult for programmes to better address their specific needs. Understanding how different women and girls are affected differently, and whether and how they access services, is therefore critical to ending all forms of violence.
The report recommends several measures to address gaps in evidence. Since older women currently account for only 10 per cent of data on violence against women, the report therefore recommends that the age range of participants in the survey be broadened. The report also recommends the inclusion of issues related to different types of violence, including those involving various types of disabilities.
