RT Article
T1 Sexual Violence–Related Pregnancy Among Internally Displaced Women in an Internally Displaced Persons Camp in Northeast Nigeria
JF Journal of interpersonal violence
VO 36
IS 9/10
SP 4758
OP 4770
A1 Oladeji, Olusola
A1 Oladeji, Bibilola
A1 Chamla, Dick
A1 Safiyanu, Garba
A1 Mele, Sule
A1 Mshelia, Helni
A1 Agbor, John
A2 Oladeji, Bibilola
A2 Chamla, Dick
A2 Safiyanu, Garba
A2 Mele, Sule
A2 Mshelia, Helni
A2 Agbor, John
LA English
YR 2021
UL https://krimdok.uni-tuebingen.de/Record/1755889941
AB Sexual violence is quite common in conflict situations and puts women at risk of unintended pregnancies. In the northeast region of Nigeria with the ongoing insurgency, a substantial number of women are kidnapped and subjected to forced marriages and repeated sexual assaults. This study set out to report on the disclosure and outcomes of sexual violence–related pregnancies (SVRPs) among women liberated from insurgents and relocated to one of largest Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camps located in Borno State, northeast Nigeria. The clinic records of women with SVRP were reviewed. Forty-seven women with SVRP were identified by the health care providers using a snowball technique to reach as many of the women with SVRP as possible. The mean age of the participants was 15.3 years (SD = 3.4 years), and all the participants had spent 2 years or more in captivity. Most of the women first disclosed the pregnancy to their peers before disclosure to health care providers or family members. All the women initially requested to have the pregnancy terminated; however, abortion services are not offered in the clinic in line with the country’s restrictive abortion laws. Following counseling and psychosocial support offered in the clinic, 19 (40%) of the women continued with the pregnancy and were delivered in the camp clinic while the remaining 26 women left the camp shortly after disclosure and pregnancy outcomes are not known. SVRP is not uncommon in humanitarian settings with its associated stigma and unwillingness among the survivors to keep the pregnancy. There is a need for further studies to provide more insight into the extent of this problem and help-seeking for SVRPs especially for women in such difficult circumstances to provide needed empirical information to drive advocacy efforts for more comprehensive services.
K1 community violence
K1 Violence Exposure
K1 Sexual Assault
K1 anything related to sexual assault
DO 10.1177/0886260518792252