WORKSHOP ON ACID ATTAKS

Topic: Acid attacks

Objectives Of The Topic: To equip the students with the knowledge regarding Acid attacks

Need Of The Seminar: Acid attacks is a major social issue in India it is necessary to give
comprehensive knowledge to the students about this sensitive topic.

Activities conducted in order to carry course with brief description and photographs

Resource Person: Dr Mrs. Ramandeep kaur Dhillon

Duration Of The Seminar: 2 Days (14july-16july 2015)

Venue: Seminar hall Desh Bhagat University, School of nursing, Mandi ,Gobindgarh

Time:10 AM-1PM

Content of the course:

DAY 1 DAY 2

TOPICS: TOPICS

 Prevention
Contents o Role of NGOs
o Regulation of acid sales
 Motivation of perpetrators
 History
 Epidemiology
 Legislations
 Gender o 8.1India
 4Health effects  Portrayals in media
o 4.1Medical
 Occurrences in fiction
o 4.2Psychological
 References
o 4.3Social
 Treatment
INTRODUCTION :

Acid throwing, also called an acid attack,[1] a vitriol attack or vitriolage, is a form
of violent assault[2][3][4] defined as the act of throwing acid or a similarly corrosive substance onto
the body of another "with the intention to disfigure, maim, torture, or kill".[5]Perpetrators of these
attacks throw corrosive liquids at their victims, usually at their faces, burning them, and
damaging skin tissue, often exposing and sometimes dissolving the bones.[6]
The most common types of acid used in these attacks are sulfuric and nitric acid. Hydrochloric
acid is sometimes used, but is much less damaging.[7] Aqueous solutions of
strongly alkaline materials, such as caustic soda (sodium hydroxide), are used as well,
particularly in areas where strong acids are controlled substances.[8][9]
The long term consequences of these attacks may include blindness, as well as
permanent scarring of the face and body,[10][11][12]along with far-reaching social, psychological,
and economic difficulties.[5]
Today, acid attacks are reported in many parts of the world, though more likely in developing
countries. Since the 1990s, Bangladeshhas been reporting the highest number of attacks and
highest incidence rates for women,[13][14] with 3,512 Bangladeshi people acid attacked between
1999 and 2013,[15] and in Pakistan and India acid attacks are at an all-time high and increasing
every year.[16][17]Although acid attacks occur all over the world, this type of violence is most
common in South Asia.[18] The UK has one of the highest rates of acid attacks per capita in the
world, according to Acid Survivors Trust International (ASTI).[19] In 2016 there were over 601
acid attacks in the UK based on ASTI figures. Over 1,200 cases were recorded over the past five
years. From 2011 to 2016 there were 1,464 crimes involving acid or corrosive substance in
London alone.

Motivation of perpetrators
The intention of the attacker is often to humiliate rather than to kill the victim. In Britain such
attacks, particularly those against men, are believed to be underreported, and as a result many of
them do not show up in official statistics.[20] Some of the most common motivations of
perpetrators include:

 Personal conflict regarding intimate relationships, and sexual rejection[21][22]

 Racial motivations
 Sexual related jealousy and lust[23]
 Social, political and religious motivations
 Gang violence and rivalry
 Attacks against minorities
 Conflicts over land ownership, farm animals, housing and property[12]
 Revenge for refusal of sexual advances, proposals of marriage and demands for dowry[10]
Acid attacks often occur as revenge against a woman who rejects a proposal of marriage or a
sexual advance.[24][25] Gender inequality and women's position in the society, in relation to men,
plays a significant role in these types of attacks.[26]
Attacks against individuals based on their religious beliefs or social or political activities also
occur. These attacks may be targeted against a specific individual, due to their activities, or may
be perpetrated against random persons merely because they are part of a social group or
community. In Europe, Konstantina Kouneva, currently a member of the European Parliament,
had acid thrown on her in 2008, in what was described as "the most severe assault on a trade
unionist in Greece for 50 years."[27] Female students have had acid thrown in their faces as a
punishment for attending school.[28] Acid attacks due to religious conflicts have been also
reported.[29][30] Both males and females have been victims of acid attacks for refusing to convert
to another religion.[31]
Conflicts regarding property issues, land disputes, and inheritance have also been reported as
motivations of acid attacks.[32][33] Acid attacks related to conflicts between criminal gangs occur
in many places, including the UK, Greece, and Indonesia.[34][20]

Gender
An accurate estimate of the gender ratio of victims and perpetrators is difficult to establish
because many acid attacks are not reported or recorded by authorities. According to a 2010 study
in The Lancet, there are "no reliable statistics" on the prevalence of acid attacks in Pakistan.[21]
A 2007 literature review analyzed 24 studies in 13 countries over the past 40 years, covering 771
cases.[14] According to the London-based charity Acid Survivors Trust International 60% of acid
attacks are on women, and acid assaults are grossly under-estimated. In some regions, assaults
perpetrated on female victims by males are often driven by the mentality "If I can't have you, no
one shall.
In Bangladesh, throwing acid has been labeled as a "gender crime", as there is a dominance of
female victims who are assaulted by males, for the reason of refusing to marry, or refusing
sexual advances from male perpetrators[73] In Jamaica, women throwing acid on other women in
relation to fights over male partners is a common cause.[73] In the UK, the majority of victims are
men, and many of these attacks are related to gang violence.[20]
Another factor that puts victims at increased risk for an acid assault is their socioeconomic status,
as those living in poverty are more likely to be attacked.[74][44] As of 2013, the three nations with
the most noted incidence of acid attacks – Bangladesh, India, and Cambodia – were ranked 75th,
101st, and 104th, respectively, out of 136 countries on the Global Gender Gap Index, a scale that
measures equality in opportunities between men and women in nations.[75]
India
Acid attacks in India, like Bangladesh, have a gendered aspect to them: analyses of news reports
revealed at least 72% of reported attacks included at least one female victim.[103]However, unlike
Bangladesh, India's incidence rate of chemical assault has been increasing in the past decade,
with a high 27 reported cases in 2010.[103] Altogether, from January 2002 to October 2010, 153
cases of acid assault were reported in Indian print media[103] while 174 judicial cases were
reported for the year of 2000.[104]
The motivation behind acid attacks in India mirrors those in Bangladesh: a study of Indian news
reports from January 2002 to October 2010 uncovered that victims’ rejected sex or marriage
proposals motivated attacks in 35% of the 110 news stories providing a motive for the
attack.[103] Notable cases of acid attacks are Sonali Mukherjee's case of 2003 and Laxmi
Agarwal in 2005.[105]
During the 2002 riots in Gujarat, targeted violence against Muslim women and children
documented by civil society groups reported "mass rapes, live burials and burnings, acid attacks,
impaling, and other brutal forms of torture that was deeply gendered, and linked violence against
women with violence on their children – both born and unborn".[106] In the 2008 Kandhamal
Riots, more than 100 Christians were gang-raped, disemboweled, burned alive and had acid
thrown to their faces by Hindu extremists for refusing to convert. Parikhit Nayak, a Dalit
Christian Protestant convert from Hinduism who was tortured to death in front of his wife,
Kanak. He was burnt with acid, castrated and finally disemboweled.[107] Acid attacks were also
used in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, where people were dragged from their houses and had acid
thrown to their faces.[108]
Police in India are also known to use acid on individuals, particularly on their eyes, causing
blindness to the victims. A well known such case is the Bhagalpur blindings, where police
blinded 31 individuals under trial (or convicted criminals, according to some versions) by
pouring acid into their eyes. The incident was widely discussed, debated and acutely criticized by
several human rights organizations. The Bhagalpur blinding case had made criminal
jurisprudence history by becoming the first in which the Indian Supreme Court ordered
compensation for violation of basic human rights.[109]
East Asia and Southeast Asia[edit]
See also: Hong Kong acid attacks

Health effects

The most notable effect of an acid attack is the lifelong bodily disfigurement. According to
the Acid Survivors Foundation in Pakistan, there is a high survival rate amongst victims of acid
attacks. Consequently, the victim is faced with physical challenges, which require long-term
surgical treatment, as well as psychological challenges, which require in-depth intervention
from psychologists and counselors at each stage of physical recovery.[156] These far-reaching
effects on their lives impact their psychological, social and economic viability in communities.[5]
Medical
The medical effects of acid attacks are extensive. As a majority of acid attacks are aimed at the
face,[14] several articles thoroughly reviewed the medical implications for these victims. The
severity of the damage depends on the concentration of the acid and the time before the acid is
thoroughly washed off with water or neutralized with a neutralizing agent. The acid can rapidly
eat away skin, the layer of fat beneath the skin, and in some cases even the underlying bone.
Eyelids and lips may be completely destroyed and the nose and ears severely
damaged.[157] Though not exhaustive, Acid Survivors Foundation Uganda findings included:[22]

 The skull is partly destroyed/deformed and hair lost.

 Ear cartilage is usually partly or totally destroyed; deafness may occur.
 Eyelids may be burned off or deformed, leaving the eyes extremely dry and prone
to blindness. Acid directly in the eye also damages sight, sometimes causing blindness in
both eyes.
 The nose can become shrunken and deformed; the nostrils may close off completely due to
destroyed cartilage.
 The mouth becomes shrunken and narrow, and it may lose its full range of motion.
Sometimes, the lips may be partly or totally destroyed, exposing the teeth. Eating and
speaking can become difficult.
 Scars can run down from the chin to neck area, shrinking the chin and extremely
limiting range of motion in the neck.
 Inhalation of acid vapors usually creates respiratory problems, exacerbated
restricted airway pathways (the esophagus and nostrils) in acid patients.
In addition to these above-mentioned medical effects, acid attack victims face the possibility
of septicemia, renal failure, skin depigmentation, and even death.
A 2015 attack that involved throwing sulfuric acid on a man's face and body while he lay in bed
caused him, among other serious injuries, to become paralyzed from the neck down.[158]
Psychological
Acid assault survivors face many mental health issues upon recovery. One study showed that
when compared to published Western norms for psychological well-being, non-Caucasian acid
attack victims reported higher levels of anxiety, depression, and scored higher on the Derriford
appearance scale, which measures psychological distress due to one's concern for their
appearance. Additionally, female victims reported lowered self-esteem according to
the Rosenberg scale and increased self-consciousness, both in general and in the social sphere.[25]
Social
In addition to medical and psychological effects, many social implications exist for acid
survivors, especially women.[22] For example, such attacks usually leave victims handicappedin
some way, rendering them dependent on either their spouse or family for everyday activities,
such as eating and running errands. These dependencies are increased by the fact that many acid
survivors are not able to find suitable work, due to impaired vision and physical handicap. This
negatively impacts their economic viability, causing hardships on the families/spouses that care
for them. As a result, divorce rates are high, with abandonment by husbands found in 25% of
acid assault cases in Uganda (compared to only 3% of wives abandoning their disfigured
husbands).[22] Moreover, acid survivors who are single when attacked almost certainly
become ostracized from society, effectively ruining marriage prospects.[74] Some media outlets
overwhelmingly avoid reporting acid attack violence, or the description of the attack is laconic or
often implies that the act was inevitable or even justified.[159]

Treatment
Treatment for burn victims remains inadequate in many developing nations where incidence is
high. Medical underfunding has resulted in very few burn centers available for victims in
countries such as Uganda,[22] Bangladesh,[160] and Cambodia.[5] For example, Uganda has one
specialized burn center in the entire nation, which opened in 2003;[22] likewise, Cambodia has
only one burn facility for victims,[5] and scholars estimate that only 30% of the Bangladeshi
community has access to health care.[160]
In addition to inadequate medical capabilities, many acid assault victims fail to report to
the police due to a lack of trust in the force, a sense of hopelessness due to the
attackers' impunity, and a fear of male brutality in dealing with their cases.[74] Most of the female
victims suffer more because of police apathy in dealing with cases of harassment as safety issues
as victims refused to register a police case despite being attacked thrice before meriting police
aid after an acid attack.[161]
These problems are exacerbated by a lack of knowledge of how to treat burns: many victims
applied oil to the acid, rather than rinsing thoroughly and completely with water for 30 minutes
or longer to neutralize the acid. Such home remedies only serve to increase the severity of
damage, as they do not counteract the acidity.[57]

Prevention
Research has prompted many solutions to the increasing incidence of acid attacks in the world.
Many countries look to Bangladesh, whose rates of attack have been decreasing, as a model,
following their lead in many legislative reforms.[44] However, several reports highlighted the
need for an increased, legal role of NGOs to offer rehabilitation support to acid
survivors.[5] Additionally, nearly all research stressed the need for stricter regulation of acid sales
to combat this social issue.[5][22][44]
Role of NGOs
Many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been formed in the areas with the highest
occurrence of acid attacks to combat such attacks. Bangladesh has its Acid Survivors
Foundation, which offers acid victims legal, medical, counseling, and monetary assistance in
rebuilding their lives.[44] Similar institutions exist in Uganda, which has its own Acid Survivors
Foundation,[22] and in Cambodia which uses the help of Cambodian Acid Survivors
Charity.[5] NGOs provide rehabilitation services for survivors while acting as advocates
for social reform, hoping to increase support and awareness for acid assault.
In Bangladesh, the Acid Survivors Foundation, Nairpokkho, Action Aid, and the Bangladesh
Rural Advancement Committee's Community Empowerment & Strengthening Local Institutions
Programme assist survivors.[162] The Depilex Smileagain Foundation and The Acid Survivors
Foundation in Pakistan operates in Islamabad, offering medical, psychological and rehabilitation
support.[163] The Acid Survivors Foundation in Uganda operates in Kampala and provides
counseling and rehabilitation treatment to victims, as well as their families.[164] The LICADHO,
the Association of the Blind in Cambodia, and the Cambodian Acid Survivors Charity assist
survivors of acid attacks. The Acid Survivors Foundation India operates from different centres
with national headquarters at Kolkata and chapters at Delhi and Mumbai.
Acid Survivors Trust International (UK registered charity no. 1079290) provides specialist
support to its sister organizations in Africa and Asia.[165][166] Acid Survivors Trust International is
the only international organisation whose sole purpose is to end acid violence. The organisation
was founded in 2002 and now works with a network of six Acid Survivors Foundations in
Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Uganda that it has helped to form. Acid
Survivors Trust International has helped to provide medical expertise and training to partners,
raised valuable funds to support survivors of acid attacks and helped change laws. A key role for
ASTI is to raise awareness of acid violence to an international audience so that increased
pressure can be applied to governments to introduce stricter controls on the sale and purchase of
acid.[167]
Indian acid attack survivor Shirin Juwaley founded the Palash Foundation[168] to help other
survivors with psychosocial rehabilitation. She also spearheads research into social norms of
beauty and speaks publicly as an advocate for the empowerment of all victims of disfigurement
and discrimination.[169] In 2011, the principal of an Indian college refused to have Juwaley speak
at her school for fear that Juwaley's story of being attacked by her husband would make students
"become scared of marriage".[170]
Regulation of acid sales
A positive correlation has been observed between acid attacks and ease of acid
purchase.[44] Sulfuric, nitric, and hydrochloric acid are most commonly used and are all cheap
and readily available in many instances. For example, often acid throwers can purchase a liter of
concentrated sulfuric acid at motorbike mechanic shops for about 40 U.S. cents. Nitric acid costs
around $1.50 per liter and is available for purchase at gold or jewelry shops, as polishers
generally use it to purify gold and metals. Hydrochloric acid is also used for polishing jewelry, as
well as for making soy sauce, cosmetics, and traditional medicine/amphetamine drugs.[7]
Due to such ease of access, many organizations call for a stricter regulation on the acid economy.
Specific actions include required licenses for all acid traders, a ban on concentrated acid in
certain areas, and an enhanced system of monitoring for acid sales, such as the need to document
all transactions involving acid.[5] However, some scholars have warned that such stringent
regulation may result in black market trading of acid, which law enforcements must keep in
mind.[5]

History
Acid has been used in metallurgy and for etching since ancient times. The rhetorical and
theatrical term "La Vitrioleuse" was coined in France after a "wave of vitriolage" occurred
according to the popular press where, in 1879, 16 cases of vitriol attacks were widely reported
as crimes of passion perpetrated predominantly by women against other women.[7]Much was
made of the idea that women, no matter how few, had employed such violent means to an end.
On October 17, 1915, acid was fatally thrown on Prince Leopold Clement of Saxe-Coburg and
Gotha, heir to the House of Koháry, by his distraught mistress, Camilla Rybicka, who then killed
herself. Sensationalizing such incidents made for lucrative newspaper sales.[171]
The use of acid as a weapon began to rise in many developing nations, specifically those
in South Asia.[160] The first recorded acid attacks in South Asia occurred in Bangladesh in
1967,[44] India in 1982, and Cambodia in 1993.[7] Since then, research has witnessed an increase
in the quantity and severity of acid attacks in the region. However, this can be traced to
significant underreporting in the 1980s and 1990s, along with a general lack of research on this
phenomenon during that period.[74]
Research shows acid attacks increasing in many developing nations, with the exception of
Bangladesh which has observed a decrease in incidence in the past few years.[44]

Legislations
Many countries have begun pushing for legislation addressing acid attacks, and a few have
recently employed new laws against this crime.[44] Under the Qisas law of Pakistan, the
perpetrator may suffer the same fate as the victim, and may be punished by having drops of acid
placed in their eyes.[172] This law is not binding and is rarely enforced according to a New York
Times report.[16] In Pakistan, the Lower House of Parliament unanimously passed the Acid
Control and Acid Crime Prevention Bill on May 10, 2011. As punishment, according to the bill
individuals held responsible for acid attacks face harsh fines and life in prison. However, the
country with the most specific, effective legislation against acid attacks is Bangladesh, and such
legal action has resulted in a steady 20–30% decrease in acid violence for the past few
years.[44] In 2013, India introduced an amendment to the Indian Penal Code through the Criminal
Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, making acid attacks a specific offence with a punishment of
imprisonment not less than 10 years and which can extend to life imprisonment and with fine.[173]
India
India's top court ruled that authorities must regulate the sale of acid. The Supreme Court's ruling
on July 16, 2013, came after an incident in which four sisters suffered severe burns after being
attacked with acid by two men on a motorbike. Acid which is designed to clean rusted tools is
often used in the attacks can be bought across the counter. But the judges said the buyer of such
acids should in future have to provide a photo identity card to any retailer when they make a
purchase. The retailers must register the name and address of the buyer.[174] In 2013, section 326
A of Indian Penal Code was enacted by the Indian Parliament to ensure enhanced punishment for
acid throwing.

Portrayals in media

 Saving Face – A 2012 documentary film by Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy and Daniel Junge that
follows Pakistani/British plastic surgeon Dr. Mohammad Jawad to his native Pakistan to aid
women who were victims of acid attacks, and examines the Pakistani parliament's exercise in
banning the act of acid burning. The film won the 2012 Academy Award for best
Documentary Short.[179][180][181]

Occurrences in fiction
 In Touch of Evil, Charlton Heston's character escapes a vitriolage attempt, the hurled acid
burning a poster behind him instead, dramatically depicting what might have happened had
the attack been successful.
 The Batman villain Two-Face was a victim of vitriolage.
 In the Arthur Conan Doyle story "The Adventure of the Illustrious Client," found in The
Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes, the villain Baron Gruner is felled by vitriolage.
 In Brighton Rock by Graham Greene, the antagonist of the story, Pinkie Brown, is in the
habit of carrying a bottle of vitriol. Although he internally debates and fantasises about
committing vitriolage many times, when he finally tries to attack a police officer with the
bottle, the officer knocks the vitriol into his face instead; blinded and stumbling from the
pain, he falls off a cliff.
 In the novel (and film) A Patch of Blue, the main character Selina is blinded by vitriolage.
 In the movie Face/Off, Sean Archer (Nicolas Cage) throws a jug of sulphuric acid at a guard
and fires a bullet at it, causing the acid to splash the guard.
 In the long running British soap Emmerdale, Ross Barton (Michael Parr) is the victim of an
acid attack.[182]

Terms
Vitriolage is the deliberate splashing of a person or object with acid, also known as vitriol, in
order to deface or kill. A female who engages in such an act is known as a vitrioleuse. There are
instances of this act throughout history and in modern times, often in places where honor
killings are also common.[183]

References

1. ^ "Cambodian victim on her acid attack". BBC News. 21 March 2010. Archived from
the original on 25 March 2010. Retrieved 23 April 2010.
2. ^ Karmakar, R.N. (2010). Forensic medicine and toxicology (3rd ed.). Kolkata, India:
Academic Publishers. ISBN 9788190908146.
3. ^ "World Now (blog)". LA Times. November 2011. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
4. ^ "Man who threw acid at woman blames 2 others". LA Times. 19 March 1992.
Retrieved 20 April 2016.
5. ^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g h i j k l CASC (May 2010). Breaking the silence: addressing acid
attacks in Cambodia (PDF). Cambodian Acid Survivors Charity (CASC). Archived
from the original (PDF) on 19 December 2013. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
6. ^ Swanson, Jordan (Spring 2002). "Acid attacks: Banglades