The Impact of Armed Conflict on Women and Girls - UNFPA

evidence <strong>of</strong> what really happened. Women are afraid to disclose their
experiences for a variety <strong>of</strong> reasons. <strong>The</strong>y suffer from intense feelings <strong>of</strong> shame
and fear <strong>of</strong> being shunned by their families. 73 Many personal stories involving
rape exist, but women in Kosovo say that the frequency <strong>of</strong> rape was much lower
than in Bosnia. <strong>The</strong> UNIFEM assessment Violence against Women addresses
domestic violence, rape and trafficking in women. Of the women who took part in
the survey, 23 per cent disclosed that they were victims <strong>of</strong> violence by a partner
or a family member. This is similar to figures reported from other countries on
domestic violence. Of the women interviewed, 18 per cent reported rape by a
partner or a family member, 74 which is at least comparable to evidence from
other countries. Further research is needed to find out more about rape inside
and outside families, as well as sexual abuse and rape <strong>of</strong> young girls. Common
talk <strong>of</strong> “honour-killings” <strong>of</strong> young girls who have been sexually abused still exists
in Kosovo. In the city <strong>of</strong> Prizren, UNMIK dealt with one such case last year,
where a girl managed to hide and then escape with the help <strong>of</strong> international staff.
<strong>The</strong> UNIFEM assessment shows that women and men have different
understandings <strong>of</strong> what violence is. Men tend to see violence as solely physical;
women perceive it to have broader ramifications, including emotional, social,
physical, financial and sexual. 75
<strong>The</strong> Girl Child
It is interesting to look at the male/female birth ratio in Kosovo. Of
hospital-born babies, the ratio is 109.4:100, and 116:100 for Pristina Hospital (33
per cent <strong>of</strong> all births). 76 <strong>The</strong>re is an obvious male preference in the society. It
would be interesting to analyse the high infant mortality rates to see if girls have
higher death rates than boys. In August 2001, between 30 and 40 babies were
abandoned in Pristina Hospital, most <strong>of</strong> them girls. In the Department for Social
Welfare, this author was told that it is more difficult to find people willing to adopt
girls than boys. In some <strong>of</strong> the UNIFEM workshops, the women were asked,
“What happens in a family when a boy is born versus a girl?” Sadly, many
mothers, fathers and other relatives reacted by saying they would embrace a
boy, but not a girl.
As mentioned before, girls get less education and have fewer
opportunities for going to school than boys. <strong>The</strong> girls are expected to take part in
time-consuming housework from an early age, whereas no such indoor demands
are made <strong>of</strong> boys. 77
73 No Safe Place, pp. 61-71.
74 Ibid. pp. 35-38.
75 Ibid., p. 39.
76 UNFPA Information sheet.
77 UNIFEM workshops 2000-2001.
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