An acid attack,[1] also called acid throwing, vitriol attack, or vitriolage, is a form of violentassault[2][3][4] involving 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. Acid attacks can lead to permanent partial or complete blindness.[6]
The long-term consequences of these attacks may include blindness, as well as eye burns, with severe permanent scarring of the face and body,[11][12][13] along with far-reaching social, psychological, and economic difficulties.[5]
Today, acid attacks are reported in many parts of the world, though more commonly in developing countries. Between 1999 and 2013, a total of 3,512 Bangladeshi people were attacked with acid,[14][15][16] with the rate of cases declining by 15–20% every year since 2002 based on strict legislation against perpetrators and regulation of acid sales.[17][18] In India, acid attacks are at an all-time high and increasing every year, with 250–300 reported incidents every year, while the "actual number could exceed 1,000, according to Acid Survivors' Trust International".[19][20]
Although acid attacks occur all over the world, this type of violence is most common in South Asia.[21] Statistics from Acid Survivors Trust International (ASTI) suggest that 80% of victims worldwide are women.[22]
^Avon Global Center for Women and Justice at Cornell Law School; Committee on International Human Rights of the New York City Bar Association; Cornell Law School International Human Rights Clinic; Virtue Foundation (2011). "Combating Acid Violence In Bangladesh, India, and Cambodia"(PDF). Avon Foundation for Women. pp. 1–64. Retrieved 6 March 2013.