Whilst gender based violence is mainly aimed at women and girls, there are also instances affecting men. There is significant under reporting of violence against boy and men in regards to domestic and sexual abuse, this is thought to be due to societal stereotyping.
Cutting across all boundaries (e.g. age, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation), gender based violence covers multiple forms of abuse against people linked directly to their gender:
- VAWG – violence against women and girls
- VAM – violence against men
- Domestic violence – based on gender
- Sexual violence – rape, forced sexual acts, forced pregnancy, abortion or sterilisation, FGM
- Psychological violence – threats, isolation, emotional abuse
- Faith abuse – forced marriage, exorcism due to sexuality, forced circumcision,
- Economic violence – controlling their access to all of the family resources: time, transportation, food, clothing, shelter, insurance, and money
- Use of children – to maintain control over a partner by not paying child support, requiring the children to spy, threatening to take children away, legal fights over custody, kidnapping or taking the children hostage to force
