Blog-4-Gender Norms and Stereotype in Ethiopia

An entrenched plight of women in ethiopia

In Ethiopia, due to gender stereotypes and discrimination that operate against women, women have a low social status. Despite their contributions to family and community issues, women generally have a lesser socioeconomic position, which prevents them from participating in decision-making at all levels. Multiple factors are contributing to the deprivation of human rights of women. Among these, gender-based discrimination, non-protection of fundamental human rights, violence, lack of access to productive resources, lack of education and training, lack of access to basic healthcare services, and lack of access to the labour market are the primary ones. Among this, sexual violence is the most common form of gender-based violence against women in Ethiopia.

Ethiopian women are more likely to work in jobs that are economically invisible and experience gendered labour distribution. Women generally have a lesser socioeconomic position, which excludes them from decision-making at all levels. High rates of girl dropouts or non-enrollment, early marriages primarily for financial reasons, or being forced to engage in commercial sex work are all effects of poverty that is reinforced by cultural attitudes and behaviors. Early marriage, abduction, and big family sizes are examples of harmful traditional practices (HTPs) that have an impact on women’s economic status.

The prevalence of gender based violence in Ethiopia

Gender based violence in Ethiopia has various features in which women are subjected to discriminatory socio-cultural practices that threaten their wellbeing and life. Gender stereotypes and violence against girls and women began as early in their childhood. Children between the age of 2-17 are exposed to various forms of violence including physical, sexual and psychological attack by their caregivers mostly at their own homes(Murphy, et al. 2021). High rates of violence are correlated with inequitable gender norms whereby corporal punishment is accepted by parents and violence from intimate partners is considered as normal.

Though boys and girls were the victims of violence there were gendered differences in their reason for punishment. Accordingly, girls usually get punished for violating gender norms that they didn’t live up to local norms around femininity and mastery of domestic chores or for being seen with men. Girls response to the negative impacts on adolescent girls’mental wellbeing, with young girls increasingly exercising agency and resorting to distress migration or even suicide in response to harsh parental treatment(Murphy, et al. 2021).

Laws and regulation on GBV in Ethiopia

To ensure gender equality and alleviate gender based discriminations against women. Ethiopia ratified various international laws including Convention on Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), international Convention on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention for the Suppression of Traffic in Person and the Exploitation of Prostitution of others

In addition to ratification of international laws, there are also various national laws, among which the 1995 FDRE constitution is the primary one. The decades-old discriminatory legislation and practices have been put to an end by the Constitution. In a nation where history was troubled by traditions and religious issues caused women to suffer because of their sex, the constitution’s Article 35 (3) made a historic decision about gender equality.

Additionally, this clause recognizes women’s right to affirmative action and gives them special consideration so they can compete and participate in all aspects of life and exercise their human and democratic rights on an equal footing with men. Gender equality has also been carefully addressed in regional constitutions, which generally mirror and operate within the basic framework of the Federal constitution. However, women are still subjected to various forms of gender based violence, among which early marriage, sexual harassment, and harmful traditional practices are the primary one.

Our learning experience revealed that much more needs to be done in terms of training, standardising practices, and vulgarising as well as disseminating information on how the law is operationalized with regard to the existing support system, particularly as it relates to the law. Early marriage is defined as a marriage relationship entered into before attaining majority age as stipulated by the governing laws.

Who are the victims of GBV?

Women are still subjected to various forms of gender based violence, among which early marriage, sexual harassment, and harmful traditional practices are the primary one.Early marriage is defined as a marriage relationship entered into before attaining majority age as stipulated by the governing laws. Both boys and girls are the victims of early marriage, however, the norm supports girls’ early marriage more than boys(.Abera, et al, 2020) According to the author, 59% of girls in Ethiopia were married before 18 years of age.(.Abera, et al, 2020) Child marriage on the other hand affects child brides decision making role and property administration including family-related transactions/economic activities, child brides are mostly powerless in making or negotiating decisions with their husbands on important household matters than those women married as adults. Domestic violence is also one of the gender based violence highly practised in Ethiopia. Domestic violence is any violence that is committed against the victim by known perpetrators. It’s a serious human rights violation that results in affecting women’s physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health.(Semahegn and Mengistie, 2015)

According to (Bayissa, 2020)studiesmore than half (50-60%) of women in Ethiopia experienced domestic violence in their life and among this, sexual violence is the most prominent one. Though women are aware of the violence it’s considered a cultural practice and compromised in many families as a corrective measure. If the man fails to beat his wife, the community cannot accept him as a man, beating a wife is seen as one of the criteria to identify a strong husband from the weak one. This is due to the patriarchal structure in which women are expected to be submissive to any action taken by their husbands and refrain from referring family issues to outsiders.

6 key points about gender based violence in EthiopiaKey Points

Sexual Violence reporting mechanism in Ethiopian Educational institutions is very low, because the process takes longer, for fear of retaliation, and for fear of gossip among their peers.
Regardless of various policy and legal reforms, domestic violence against women by their husbands, and intimate partners continues to be a public health problem for women and results in adverse social, economic, emotional, health, sexual, and reproductive health outcomes.
More than half (50.5%) of women in Ethiopia experienced domestic violence including physical and psychological acts of violence in their lifetime.
Even though boys and girls were the victims of childhood violence there were gendered differences in their reason for punishment, in which, girls usually get punished for violating local norms around femininity and mastery of domestic chores or for being seen with men.
Early marriage eludes women’s autonomy and empowerment in domestic and public spheres.
Domestic violence particularly beating, is perceived as an acceptable and justifiable practice by the husband if it is taken as a corrective measure.

Conclusion

Generally, women in Ethiopia are subjected to gender based violence and stereotypes. Among this, sexual harassment, early marriage, wife beating and domestic violence are the prominent one. Though Ethiopia has taken various policy reforms by ratifying international laws and enacting domestic laws, still the violence and discrimination continued to operate against socio-economic interests of the women. Accordingly, much is left to be done in addressing culturally embedded traditional norms and stereotypes to ensure women are equally benefiting from socio-economic and constitutional guarantees in Ethiopia.

What works to prevent gender based violence? 5 recommendations from this bolg. Recommendation

In addition to material support and legal recourse, psychological support shall be provided for victims of sexual based violences.
There is a need to shift the views of individuals and households towards more equitable norms for violence prevention programming, especially for girls and adolescents in rural areas,who tend to be punished for non-compliance with gender norms.
Any policy-making organ, program designing, and implementing authority, and all other stakeholders shall establish an appropriate strategy to prevent and control violence against women
As women beating has been recognized as the right of the husband, a community-based program that aims at preventing and punishing wife beating shall be designed by integrating domestic violence with a health extension program.
since domestic violence is perceived as an acceptable and justifiable practice, it needs an intervention to change the common attitude through inclusive awareness creation for both women and men

Reference

Abera, M. et al. (2020) ‘Early marriage and women’s empowerment: the case of child-brides in Amhara National Regional State, Ethiopia’, BMC International Health and Human Rights, 20(1), pp. 1–17.
Murphy, M. et al. (2021) ‘Gender-norms, violence and adolescence: Exploring how gender norms are associated with experiences of childhood violence among young adolescents in Ethiopia’, Global Public Health, 16(6), pp. 842–855.
Semahegn, A. and Mengistie, B. (2015) ‘Domestic violence against women and associated factors in Ethiopia; Systematic review’, Reproductive Health, 12(78), pp. 1–12
Bayissa, R. (2020) ‘Attitude and Perception of Women on Domestic Violence Practised by Husbands in Ethiopia’, Liberal Arts and Social Sciences International Journal (LASSIJ), 4(1), pp. 255–270.

Blog-4-Gender Norms and Stereotype in Ethiopia

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