Gender inequality, an already entrenched and prevalent plague in the world, has worsened in the presence of conflicts throughout the world. The majorly of women in Afghanistan, Ukraine, Sudan, Syria, Gaza, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Myanmar, and Yemen are vulnerable to catastrophic war. According to UN Women, around 614 million women are living in conflict-affected areas. The majority of these women lack access to food, food markets, and healthcare.
Hunger is both the cause and result of conflicts and crises. In a recent report published by the UNDP, out of 350 million hungry people, 60 percent are women. Hunger has been a major concern for governments and institutions throughout the world; however, in the presence of perpetual rifts, the issue of hunger and food insecurity is out of control. The current statistics about food insecurity in Gaza and Ukraine, as reported by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, are horrific. At least 557,000 females in Gaza and 52 percent of females in Ukraine are confronted with extreme food insecurity. The situation is more dreary for the mothers and adult women, who prioritize feeding others over themselves.
Unpaid labour already exists in male-dominated societies, but with the increase in the intensity of conflicts, women are suffering from the extraordinary challenge of providing care to children in the form of feeding and supporting the family as a whole. The shoulders of weak women are weighed down by a double burden: one in the form of unpaid labour at home and the other at workplaces to assist the males of their families in war-ridden countries.
An astonishing revelation has been made by a UN Women report that seven in ten women in conflicted territories are facing severe weight loss. There are countless factors responsible for this horrendous loss of weight. Inadequate food availability, poverty, displacement, and gender-based violence are significant factors contributing to this unusual health condition among women.
They need a healing touch on an urgent basis, and along with that, it is crucial to nurture and utilize this human potential to its fullest. According to Plato, suppressing women is not only a violation of their fundamental rights but also a flagrant waste of human resources.
During pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum phase, unsurprisingly, women are vulnerable to various complexities. However, in countries where women lack access to basic healthcare, these complexities are further exacerbated. In war-affected areas, around 76 percent of pregnant women face severe anaemia. Similarly, 99 percent of women lack basic nutritional facilities, thus resulting in stunted growth of the foetus and deteriorating health of the mother. After childbirth, 55 percent of women are unable to breastfeed due to health issues. More shockingly, 99 percent of women face challenges in securing enough breast milk, resulting in nefarious impacts on the growth, development, and nourishment of the infant.
As evident from the precarious situation of war, people are forced to be displaced from their homes and settle in tents and temporary houses. Under these conditions, around one out of three women enjoy the privilege of access to safe cooking facilities. However, 69 percent of women are forced to use unsafe cooking methods, with wood and solid waste materials. More exposure of women to smoke and pollutants is leading them to pernicious health conditions such as respiratory diseases.
Rape of women is a widespread weapon in war-torn areas. Rape leaves behind physical, social, and psychological trauma on survivors and families. It is a traditional method to humiliate females and their families and to dominate or destroy their communities. Since 2015, eastern DRC has been the site of conflict. According to one estimate, 40 women are raped every day in DRC. The United Nations Human Rights Commission passed a resolution in 1993 recognizing rape as a war crime, thus allowing the prosecution of cases involving rape and sexual violence as war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Considering all the above-mentioned afflictions faced by the already suppressed class of humans, there is a need for an urgent response by state and non-state actors. Women are a vulnerable community, but this condition is exacerbated by the gender-blind institutions, using them as a weapon of war, and the double burden they carry. It is the need of the hour that all the international human rights organizations, stakeholders, advocates of feminist narratives, and prolific writers should come forward to assuage the catastrophic condition of women in the world. They need a healing touch on an urgent basis, and along with that, it is crucial to nurture and utilize this human potential to its fullest. According to Plato, suppressing women is not only a violation of their fundamental rights but also a flagrant waste of human resources.
