The report said that the condition of dalit women is still pathetic as they are still subjected to domestic, social and sexual violence. Poverty, illiteracy, unemployment and sexual discrimination are the main causes that make their condition pathetic, the report says.
The organization said that the study was conducted in 2012 among 1,513 respondents of 16 districts. Out of total respondents, 1,294 were females and the remaining males. The FEDO said that most of the respondents were from dalit communities. The study was conducted in Palpa, Saptari, Kavrepalanchowk, Siraha, Dadeldhura, Kailali, Parsa, Banke, Surkhet, Jhapa, Morang, Doti, Ilam, Kaski, Chitwan and Bardiya districts.
"Violence against dalit women is not the same as violence against women in general. Dalit women suffer more serious forms of violence," Durga Sob, President of FEDO, said in a program held in the capital on Tuesday. She claims that Dalit womens have been murdered, trafficked and sexually abused by Dalit males as well as by members of non-Dalit communities since a long time. The study also shows that underage marriage is also rampant in the Dalit community. More than 60 percent of Dalit women are married off before they reach the legal age of marriage.
"Inter-caste marriage between Dalit and non-Dalit becomes a serious problem that sometimes leads to the death of Dalit people," added Sob. Compared to other parts of the country, Dalit women of the Tarai region have been enduring serious forms of violence. "Most of these women are tortured mentally, physically and sometimes even killed on one or the other pretexts," she added.
The study also shows that Dalit women have internalized the violence and are unlikely to complain about the injustice they face.
The organization claimed that among the Dalit women who are trafficked, most work at massage centers, bars, restaurants, brothels or are sent to the Gulf countries. Sob alleged that the government and the donor agencies have been overlooked the problems of Dalit women. FEDO has demanded special package for the empowerment of Dalit women.
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