WOMEN AS TORTURE VICTIMS

This paper reports a retrospective study of the frequency, severity, modalities and mental health consequences of torture in 28 Latin American refugee women in Toronto. The data on these women and a comparison group of male torture victims were retrieved from case records in a hospital outpatient clinic. The results support the hypotheses implicit in the scanty literature available that the frequency and effects of torture in women differ from those found in men. In female victims, as in their male counterparts, the severity of the torture was related to the degree of their political involvement. However, torture was more frequently sexual, and its consequences more often affected the women's sexual adaptation.; This study investigates the frequency, severity, modalities, and mental health consequences of torture in 28 Latin American refugee women in Toronto, Canada. Information on these women was gathered from case records in a hospital outpatient clinic. The case histories of 28 male Latin American refugees and victims of political persecution and torture were used as control for this study. The findings support the hypotheses presented. Women, who are politically persecuted, are tortured less frequently than men are. There is also an association between the sex of the victim and the techniques employed in torture. Findings also indicate that the occurrence and severity of torture in women depend on the degree of political participation. Lastly, sexually tortured women manifest greater psychological and sexual dysfunction.