Marital Rape in Pakistan: An Exploratory Study of Public Perception

Abstract

In Pakistan, marital rape is not considered a significant concern of the Government because physical or domestic abuse is regarded as a private affair of the family. The majority of people in Pakistan are completely unaware of the notion of marital rape. As a country where violence against women is common, it is essential to study the perception level of marital rape. The study sought to ascertain the perception of women living in Bahawalpur about the subject of marital rape. This study is exploratory; depending on saturation, the researcher performed in-depth interviews with 11 respondents. The researcher used the Creswell Model (2014) to assess the qualitative data. According to the findings of the study, the concept of marital rape is rarely known among the female population in Bahawalpur. The family as an institution plays a relatively minor role in imparting sex education to their daughters. The study concludes that there are no institutions in Pakistan other than the family that can educate and aware women of their sexual rights.