Acid attack

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search
Not to be confused with the term "acid attack" which refers to tooth decay due to bacterial acid.
Acid attack victim, Cambodia
Acid attack victim, Cambodia

Acid attacks are a violent phenomena that primarily occur in Afganistan,[1] India,[2] Bangladesh,[3][4] Pakistan,[3] and other Asian countries.[5] Perpetrators of these attacks throw acid at their victims (usually at their faces), burning them. Jordan Swanson states that sulfuric acid when thrown on a human body, causes skin tissue to melt, often exposing bones below the flesh, sometimes even dissolving the bones.[6]

The consequences of these attacks include permanent scarring of the face and body as well as potential blindness.[3][4][5] Acid attacks are sometimes referred to as vitriolage.[7] Eighty percent of all acid attack victims are female; and almost 40% are under 18 years of age.[5]

Contents

[edit] Victims and treatment

The chemical agents most commonly used to commit these attacks are hydrochloric acid and sulphuric acid. Acid attacks are, according to Mridula Bandyopadhyay and Mahmuda Rahman Khan, a form of violence primarily targeted at women. They describe it as a relatively recent form of violence with the earliest record in Bangladesh from 1983.[3] The scholar Afroza Anwary, makes the point out that acid violence does not only occur in Bangladesh but also in Pakistan, China, Ethiopia and has occurred historically in Europe.[8]

Acid attacks damage the victim physically and psychologically and may require long-term surgical treatment. The physical scarring can lead to survivors feeling shame and embarrassment, and suffering prejudice and stigma from their peers.[9] The Acid Survivors Foundation (ASF) provides aid in treating victims of acid attacks in Bangladesh.[8]

Acid attacks are used there as a form of revenge for refusal of sexual advances, proposals of marriage and demands for dowry.[3] Scholars Taru Bahl and M.H. Syed say that land disputes are another leading cause of acid attacks.[5] In Bangladesh, where acid attacks are relatively common, attacks are mostly a form of domestic violence.[10] Tom O'Neill of National Geographic reported that acid attacks are also used to enforce the caste system in modern India, where uppercaste individuals often attack Dalits for supposedly violating the order.[11]

[edit] Legislation

In 2002, Bangladesh introduced the death penalty for throwing acid and laws strictly controlling the sales of acids.[12]

Under the Qisas law of Pakistan, the perpetrator must suffer the same fate as the victim, and may be punished by having drops of acid placed in his or her eyes.[13]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Ermachild Chavis, melody, Meena, Heroine of Afghanistan (St Martin's Press, 2003), ISBN 978031230689X
  2. ^ A. Carlson Whalen, Mother Earth and the Gene Machines (Vantage Press, 2006), ISBN 9780533153395
  3. ^ a b c d e Bandyopadhyay, Mridula and Mahmuda Rahman Khan, 'Loss of face: violence against women in South Asia' in Lenore Manderson, Linda Rae Bennett (eds) Violence Against Women in Asian Societies (Routledge, 2003), ISBN 9780700717412
  4. ^ a b "CNN.com - Bangladesh combats an acid onslaught against women - November 11, 2000". Retrieved on 2008-03-13.
  5. ^ a b c d Bahl, Taru & M.H. Syed, Encyclopaedia of the Muslim World (Anmol Publications PVT Ltd, 2004), ISBN 9788126114193, p. 224
  6. ^ Swanson, Jordan (Spring 2002), “Acid attacks: Bangladesh’s efforts to stop the violence.”, Harvard Health Policy Review 3 (Spring 2002): 3, <http://www.hcs.harvard.edu/~epihc/currentissue/spring2002/swanson.php>. Retrieved on 18 June 2008 
  7. ^ Karmakar, R.N., Forensic Medicine and Toxicology (Academic Publishers, 2003), ISBN 9788187504692
  8. ^ a b Anwary, Afroza (Spring 2002), “Acid Violence And Medical Care In Bangladesh: Women’s Activism as Carework.”, Gender & Society 17 (2003): 305-313, doi:10.1177/0891243202250851, <http://gas.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/17/2/305>. Retrieved on 18 June 2008 
  9. ^ "Long Term Impact of ACID Attack". Retrieved on 2008-03-28.
  10. ^ Scholte, Marianne (2006-03-17). "Acid Attacks in Bangladesh: A Voice for the Victims", Spiegel Online. Retrieved on 2008-03-21. 
  11. ^ O'Neill, Tom (June 2003), “India's Untouchables”, National Geographic: 2-31 
  12. ^ Roland Buerk (28 July 2006). "Bangladesh's acid attack problem". BBC News. Retrieved on 2008-06-14.
  13. ^ Juliette Terzieff (July 13, 2004). "Pakistan's Acid-Attack Victims Press for Justice". Women's eNews. Retrieved on 2008-05-30.

[edit] External links

Reports of acid attacks from around the world
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acid_attack"
Personal tools