Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Nepal, Cambodia and Uganda are countries with the highest reported incidence. More than two-thirds of recent victims in the U. But globally, 80 per cent of acid attack victims are women and girls. Acid violence is categorized as a form of gender-based violence because gendered roles and hierarchies within families and society not only motivate perpetrators to commit the crime, but also provide them with a sense of impunity.
Perpetrators usually intend to disfigure rather than kill their victims. Even in the U. This perverse logic for acid attacks appears to hold water everywhere in the world. Dr Simon Harding, associate professor in Criminology at the University of West London, said criminals had turned to acid because it is cheap, easily available and instils fear in both rivals and the public. Carrying bleach moved away from being a weapon of last resort, where it was used to target someone you truly hated.
Some of them look at violence like a video game and acid takes them to the next level in the game. The analysis of data, obtained under a Freedom of Information request, also revealed that domestic violence and religious or racial hatred were among the motivations for attacks.
Newham topped the list of 32 boroughs with the highest number of acid attacks between January and December He is now serving 20 years for the attack which injured 22 people.
Robbers Antoine Mensah, 21, Miracle Osondu, 19, and Mohammed Ali, 17, maimed people with acid and alkaline in a series of attacks to steal items they were advertising on Gumtree. They were jailed for a total of 32 years last September. Earlier this month fraudster Jovan Stanley was jailed for three years for hurling ammonia at a police officer trying to arrest him after a spending spree. Dr Simon Harding, a criminologist and expert on gangs at Middlesex University, says acid is becoming "a weapon of first choice".
Gang members know there are advantages in using acid to hurt someone rather than a knife because "the charges are more serious if you are caught with a knife and the tariff for prison sentences are much higher". Dr Harding added that "acid is likely to attract a 'GBH with intent' charge while using a knife is more likely to lead to the attacker being charged with attempted murder". It's a harder offence to prove because there is rarely any DNA evidence and its much easier to dispose of a plastic bottle than it is a knife.
Dr Harding says the government needs to attack the problem on three fronts. He says acid is too easily available, sentencing needs to be brought into line with knife crime and a programme of education is required.
Asked what can be done to stop it she says: "To have an acid in a different bottle to the one it was purchased in can be an offence, we can also regulate volumes of sale, we can regulate ages at which people can buy it. Jaf Shah, from the London charity Acid Survivors Trust International says the phenomenon isn't new and dates back to the Victorian times in Britain, but says the recent figures are shocking.
He is among those calling for regulations on the sale of acid to be tightened. There are no age restrictions on buying household bleach or drain cleaning products containing acid in the UK.
There are rules which limit the sale of certain substances under the explosives precursors and poisons EPP rules aimed at businesses who sell or supply such chemicals in bulk. The Met said it was working with retailers to raise awareness that people might be buying corrosive substances to use as weapons. Follow our live coverage for the latest news on the coronavirus pandemic. Reshma Qureshi was just 17 and on her way to a school exam when a group of men threw acid on her face.
Her older sister's abusive husband and two of his relatives were behind the attack. Ms Qureshi refuses to hide her face the way many acid victims in India are expected to. Ms Qureshi has released beauty vlogs, teaching survivors how to do the perfect cat eye and red lip — while also raising awareness about the scourge of acid attacks. She was invited to model at New York Fashion Week in and has published a memoir.
But despite her brush with the world of high fashion, she still doesn't have what she really wants: a job. They never ask what happened to you, your face. Ms Qureshi said many acid victims were attacked by their own husbands and needed to support their children. Do not reject them because of their disfigured faces," she said. Ms Qureshi now works with a charity offering accommodation, support and legal advice to acid victims in New Delhi. Make Love, Not Scars runs a shelter home for women whose lives have been destroyed by a crime that is on the rise in India.
In neighbouring Bangladesh, in contrast, acid attacks have decreased since new laws restricted the sale of common chemicals and the death penalty was introduced for attackers. The glacial pace of India's legal system means even when attackers are charged, it can take between five and 10 years for a conviction. As long as acid is easily available I only see it increasing," said Ms Singh. Ms Singh said many of the acid victims who came to the shelter were attacked by the people closest to them.
Soni Devi was on the verge of becoming a police officer when she was doused with acid. The year-old had a gun licence and an acceptance letter to join the local police force.
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