WUNRN
Brownell P. Neglect, abuse
and violence against older women: Definitions and research frameworks (Review
article). SEEJPH 2014, posted: 13 January 2014. DOI 10.12908/SEEJPH-2014-03.
Direct Link to Full 12-Page
2014 Text: http://www.seejph.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/2014-01-Patricia-Brownell-SEEJPH.pdf
NEGLECT, ABUSE &
VIOLENCE AGAINST OLDER WOMEN: DEFINITIONS & RESEARCH FRAMEWORKS
Patricia Brownell1 - 1 Fordham University, New York City, New York, USA.
International Network for the
Prevention of Elder Abuse – INPEA - http://www.inpea.net/
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
http://www.ipsnews.net/2014/08/abuse-of-older-women-overlooked-and-underreported/
Abuse of Older Women Overlooked
& Underreported
Abusers are often family members, making
victims reluctant to report the violence. Credit: Boris Bartels/cc by 2.0
By Chau Ngo
UNITED
NATIONS, Aug 14 2014 (IPS) - A veteran women’s rights
activist, Patricia Brownell was still taken aback by the prevalence of abuse
against older women she discovered during dozens of conversations she and her
colleagues had with victims.
They
found that for every one official report of abuse made by agencies in New York
State, there are 23 self-reports, with the abusers ranging from husbands, sons,
daughters and other relatives to complete strangers.
“It’s
underreported,” Brownell, vice president of the National Committee for the
Prevention of Elder Abuse, told IPS. “In many cases, the victims did not want
to talk about it. They felt guilty. They felt it was their fault.”
Most
research on the abuse of older women has focused on North America and Europe. A study
conducted in five European countries in 2011 found that around 28 percent of
older women had experienced abuse.
The
situation in developing countries, where the socio-economic conditions are
worse and the welfare system weaker, mostly remains unknown.
“It
could be worse,” said Brownell, citing harmful traditional practices against
widows or those accused of witchcraft in some developing countries. “It really
introduces another dimension of abuse against older women. It’s community
abuse.”
Violence
directed against younger women has long overshadowed that against the elderly,
who in some cases are more vulnerable. There has been so little research into
the issue that activists said they do not know its full scope yet, hampering
efforts to prevent and fight the violence.
Abuse
of older women can take various forms, from physical, psychological and
emotional (verbal aggression or threats), to sexual, financial (swindling,
theft), and intentional or unintentional neglect, according to the World Health
Organisation (WHO).
Addressing
the Fifth Working Group on Aging at the United Nations in New York, Silvia
Perel-Levin, chair of the NGO Committee on Ageing in Geneva, showed how
fragmented the picture is: the prevalence of abuse ranges from six percent to
44 percent of those surveyed, depending on the geographic location and
socio-economic conditions.
While
there has been an increase in reports of abuse and violence against older women
in the past few years, it does not necessarily mean the problem is worsening,
Perel-Levin told IPS.
“I
believe [violence and abuse] have always been there, but they were never
investigated, never reported,” she said. “That was always a taboo. We don’t
have enough data about violence against older women.”
A long-neglected issue
The
issue has been neglected partly because of the misconception that older women
are less likely to suffer from domestic violence, activists said. Studies on
domestic violence and reproductive health tend to examine the situation of
women under 49 years old. The age range has only been broadened recently.
“People
may think that older women are not subject to rape, and that their husbands
stop beating them because they are 50,” said Perel-Levin. “This is not true.”
For
many women, the abuse begins later in life. The abusers are sometimes beloved
family members, which complicates the situation, as the victims are reluctant
to report the violence.
Living
with an extended family does not guarantee protection, because in many cases,
the sons and other family members are the abusers. In several Asian countries,
the daughters-in-law, who are expected to take care of their husbands’ aged
parents, sometimes turn out to be abusers, activists said.
In
developing countries, the situation is difficult for the victims even when they
report the abuses, said Kazi Reazul Hoque of the Bangladesh National Human
Rights Commission.
The
older women in that South Asian country most likely to face abuse and violence
are from ethnic minorities and religious communities, Hoque, a former judge,
told IPS. These are already weaker and poorer communities, which encouraged the
offenders to commit violence.
“Even
when they bring the case to the court, it’s still difficult for them to pursue
‘the war’,” he said. “How long can these poor people fight?”
Activists
have been calling for more research into violence against older women, such as
by U.N. Women, the United Nations agency for gender equality and women’s
empowerment.
James Collins, representative to the United Nations of the International Council on Social Welfare, told IPS, “We will continue to raise this issue during the events of the Sustainable Development Goals. We’re here push for the rights of older people."