Abstract
A woman flees domestic violence, state persecution and the threat of forced sterilization only to be ensnared as a victim of sex trafficking. A teenage girl escapes her village so that she will not be forced to endure genital mutilation only to face discrimination and unemployment in her new country. A woman is raped, mutilated and displaced by warring militias and forced to leave her children behind as she escapes across the border. These women and their stories are familiar to clinicians working with women survivors of political violence. Unfortunately, their experiences are also illustrative of the structures of political violence that place women – as women – at risk. This paper considers the nature and scope of politically motivated violence against women, offers a feminist critique of the current political asylum system, discusses the complex psychological challenges faced by women who survive these experiences and offers recommendations to clinicians working with this population.
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© 2015 Diya Kallivayalil
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Kallivayalil, D. (2015). Women, Political Violence and Migration: Feminist and Clinical Issues in the Asylum Process. In: Espín, O.M., Dottolo, A.L. (eds) Gendered Journeys: Women, Migration and Feminist Psychology. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137521477_7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9781137521477_7
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
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