In the private sphere, within their own families and households, women face different forms of violence every day, despite having legal provisions in India. Reproduction abuse is one such form of violence that not only badly impacts their sexual and reproductive health but also their autonomy—autonomy of body, dignified life, and privacy.
As per the United Nations Population Fund, reproductive violence includes any form of abuse, coercion, discrimination, exploitation, or violence that compromises a person’s reproductive autonomy. Stealthing and Sabotaging are very common in Indian households, where due to toxic masculinity and patriarchy, husbands and family members often violate the wife’s reproductive rights i.e. rights to use contraception to prevent unwanted pregnancy, right to abortion, etc.
As per the December 2019 research on Reproduction coercion in Uttar Pradesh, approximately 1 in 8 (12 percent) women reported ever experiencing reproduction abuse and coercion from their current husband or in-laws while 42 percent of these women reported reproductive violence by their husband, 48 percent reported reproductive abuse by in-laws and 10 percent faced both from husband and in-laws. Women have several challenges in their reproductive health within their households. According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), only 10 percent of women in India are independently able to make decisions about their reproductive health. 11 percent of women faced violence due to denying sexual activities with their husbands.
Stealthing, Sabotaging, and reproduction abuse against women
Stealthing and Sabotaging are both synonyms for reproductive coercion and abuse, or both are connected to contraception use, where Stealthing means non-consensual condom removal by a male partner while having sex, sabotaging means active interference with contraceptive methods such as defecting contraceptives or birth control pills, hiding, withholding, or destroying oral contraceptives, etc. All these come under reproductive abuse and coercion. These are all deliberate attempts to control a woman’s reproductive health/ choice or interference with her reproductive autonomy.
According to the National Institute of Health, Reproductive abuse is a hidden form of violence against women. It includes behaviour intended to control or dictate women’s reproductive autonomy, for pregnancy that leads to forced pregnancy. Reproductive abuse of a woman within the family is also gender-based violence, which is mostly committed by husbands and their relatives.
Why do women face reproductive violence by their families?
The majority of the women in India are unaware of their legal reproductive rights, and those who are informed, due to societal norms, patriarchal beliefs, vague values, and economic dependence on their husbands and in-laws, are not in a condition to exercise these legal rights. Under Article 21 of the Indian constitution, women’s reproductive rights are constitutionally recognised, where women have the right to make reproductive choices such as the right to use contraception, the right to abortion, the right to have or haven’t a child, etc.
According to the UN, reproductive right includes the right to life, liberty, and the security of a person. But despite having all these legal provisions still women become the victims of these crimes on an everyday basis. Women often become the victim of stealthing (removing a condom during sex without the consent of a partner) in India. Patriarchal dominance plays a significant role in the occurrence of stealthing. Because of the firm patriarchal mindsets, the male partner often does not consider their female partner’s opinion on the matter of intercourse. Along with other opinions, women’s opinions on sex are also subverted by their partners. It is barely a matter of unconscious negligence but a matter of male dominance. Women’s sexual desires and health are still taboo in Indian male-centric and dominated society.
December 2019 research data on Reproduction coercion in Uttar Pradesh revealed that 42 percent of the women faced reproductive abuse from their husbands. In the name of family planning or sometimes for a boy child, women face sabotage and abuse from their husbands and in-laws for becoming pregnant. The same research data also revealed that 48 percent of reproductive abuse like sabotaging is faced by their in-laws in households. These violations of women’s reproductive rights in Indian households led to unintended and forced conceiving and pregnancy termination. The report of UNFPA 2022 across 64 countries, says more than 8 percent of women lack the power to decide on contraception, and nearly a quarter of women lack the power to say no to sex, while in India only 10 percent of women can make their reproductive health decisions independently. Nearly half of all pregnancies in India are unplanned.
Reproductive abuse and its impact on sexual and reproductive health
Reproductive abuse such as stealthing and sabotaging not only violates women’s reproductive choices and rights but also hurts their reproductive and sexual health. Stealthing and sabotaging often lead to unintended and forced conceiving and pregnancy termination (abortion). According to the United Nations Population Fund Report 2022, India accounted for one in seven unintended pregnancies globally, and these pregnancies are along with abortions. The same report highlighted that unsafe abortions are the third leading cause of maternal mortality in India, and close to 8 women die from causes related to unsafe abortions each day.
Between 2007-2011, 67 percent of abortions in India were classified as unsafe. It is gender-based violence against women, and this form of violence is being committed by partners and relatives. As per the World Health Organisation, violence can negatively affect women’s sexual, physical, mental, and reproductive health.
How can we tackle this issue of women within society and family?
Gender inequality in households and societies is one of the main causes of violence against women. Because in the male-dominated patriarchal family and society, women are treated as inferior to men, and men are always seen as powerful and superior. The concept of toxic masculinity for a long time in human history –controlled women’s sexuality and reproduction. This highly patriarchal mindset of society and family violates women’s sexual and reproductive agency. The World Health Organisation believes that by promoting gender equality we can prevent violence against women.
Reproductive abuse against women can also be overcome through public health awareness programs on their reproductive health and rights, and in the rural area with the help of ASHA worker’s awareness to women about their reproductive rights, safe abortion, and enhanced access to contraceptives because the majority of the women in India are not aware of their sexual and reproductive health. Uvi Health (a health-tech platform for women) 2022 survey shows that more than 40 percent of urban Indian women are unaware of common reproductive and sexual health. As per the World Health Organisation (WHO) Violence against women – particularly intimate partner violence or sexual violence – is a major public health problem and a violation of women’s human rights.
About the author(s)
She has completed her Master’s degree in History from Lady Shri Ram
College for Women, University of Delhi with a specialisation in ancient history. She has a keen
interest in ancient texts, and with their help, she wants to explore women's role and status in
ancient households and society. Therefore, her interest lies in ancient literature, Gender,
Caste, and society. With all these ancient texts, like Brahmanical, Buddhist, and Jain, she wants
to understand the actual rights and status of women in ancient households, such as being a wife,
daughter, and others. What was their role in ancient civilization and culture, and their
unspoken contribution which these texts did not mention properly.
