Violence against Women and What Is Being Done to Prevent Violence against Women in Northern Cyprus: A Review

Abstract

This study is a review article to provide information and create awareness on violence against women and what is being done to prevent violence against women in Northern Cyprus. Violence against women, which is considered as a public health issue, has been increased in Northern Cyprus during the pandemic period just like all around the world. Although there are no recent studies found in the literature, other studies on this subject found that one in every three women are exposed to physical violence in the country. There have been some important initiatives that are legal and supportive of women to prevent violence against women and to protect women against violence with the contribution of nongovernmental organizations. One of the most important steps in this process is that the “Law on Domestic Violence” was made and its emergency was approved by the parliamentary committee. It was determined that there were no sufficient policies developed to prevent violence against women, that the number of women’s refuges and police domestic violence units was low and no special arrangement has been done for victims of violence in hospitals and private clinics. In this regard, it is recommended to provide on-the-job training to nurses working in this country about prevention, evaluation, detection, and management of violence against women and to develop protocols and standards in the units that fight against violence.

Keywords

• domestic violence
• nurse
• violence
• woman