Acid Violence

Journalist and blogger Scott Carney wrote about something that is only happens in cheesy action movies here in the West, but unfortunately is quite a common reality in South Asia: acid violence.

Last week a young woman from Mysore was doused with a bottle of hydrochloric acid and then forced to drink a mixture of acid and alcohol. No one was surprised. Her husband had abused her for years, she had even lodged a series of complaints with the police in the months before the final attack. Two days ago Hina Fathima died in a Mysore hospital.

Acid violence is increasingly common across South Asia and cases like Fathima's are common enough that they often don't even make the front page of local newspapers. The Campaign and Struggle Against Acid Attacks on Women, or CSAAAW, has recorded 61 acid attacks in Karnataka since 1999. While most of the women die from their injuries or from suicide some survivors have come out to try to change local laws that make acid cheap and easily available at any corner grocery store. The women who do survive often have to bear terrible medical costs and often lose their eyes, noses, ears and any semblance of facial expression.

Link | Gallery | NPR Story and Podcast


What a horrible and barbaric thing to happen.

I wonder - more now than ever - how South Asian women must look at American women. (Although, don't get me wrong, women over here suffer from domestic violence as well, it just seems they have more outlets for help.)
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Cue the following comments :

"this isn't neat"
"i'm unsubscribing"
"what the hell are you posting this for neatorama"

This is a pretty crazy story tho. What a sad sad thing.
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So hows that "religion of peace" working out for ya?

The women have the power to stop it. Night time, sleeping bastard (i.e. husband), kitchen knife, slit cardioid, problem solved.

//Where's Santa Claus when you need a good mythic figure to believe in?
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I'll make the cued comments:

This is not "neat" and its really weird to see it on neatorama. Its not what I came here for, and its not something I want to see on here at all, especially without a disclaimer (e.g. "We know this isn't neat, but we thought it was important to recognize")
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Eh, I come to this site to read up on interesting things. And I don't mind if that interesting bit is serious and upsetting. Keep up the good work, Neato Editors.
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I really wonder what kind of man would do such a thing to another human being. Yet alone the one that is supposed to love him. (I guess that's the way it works someplaces). I really cannot understand. But hey; I live in Switzerland. how am I supposed to understand other people for I only know my cheesing and cowbelling. Ah and mountains. I forgot the pink mountains. I am disturbed.
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Truly horrible!

What this boils down to is a corrupt system of law that treats women as second class citizens.

You can't condemn Christianity because some nut job blows up an abortion clinic in the name of God. Same applies here.
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I agree with Perceive. I think knowing about important things happening in other countries is "neat". Keep it up, Neatorama.

And stop slamming Islam, you ignorant jerks. There's justification for abusing those who are beneath you on the social scale in every conservative religion. Don't make me bring up the Crusades or the Hindu practice of sati.
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Having been to the link and read through the story, I find the issue disturbing but applaud Neatorama for bringing this into the open.

And to all the previous posters who've got their panties in a bunch over the 'religion of peace' and Islam, let us please be perfectly clear that the article does not point the finger at any particular religion - so no points there to prop up your prejudice du jour.

If you were all a little more worldly, you'd realise that the story comes from South India, which is largely Hindu, but also home to followers of Jainism, Buddhism, Christianity and Islam.

Repression of women under Hinduism is widespread in India, especially the more rural or poverty stricken parts.

The tendency to see violence done to human beings with brown skin and immediately blame followers of Islam speaks volumes about the prejudices of the willfully ignorant.
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Gee, I was under the impression that the only people who get to decide what "has business" being on Neatorama were the people who maintain and write Neatorama. How silly of me.
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Truly barbaric and the men that do this need to get likewise in return.

after saying that did anyone else find the name of the town/country/village (whatever that place was) ironic? Mysore?? wtf
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