Feminist movement has been flaunted
with such a fanfare by the modern West that one is led to believe that
Europe and America should be a heaven for women where they should be leading
a contended life with complete independence and self-respect.
However, the reports appearing in the press and observations of
Western intellectuals are sufficient to reveal that all that glitters is not
gold.
Industrially developed countries of the West are currently facing a
new threat – a wave of misogamy that has been termed as ‘Domestic
Violence’ by the ‘United Nations’ Centre for Social Development and
Human Affairs. The Centre based
at Vienna has conducted two surveys which reveal its deep concern over the
fast growing rate of divorce in the West. These reports also highlight increasing domestic violence
which has been described as the most unhappy and agonizing development to
which the Centre wants serious attention to be paid by all well-meaning
persons. These reports say that
it is no longer possible to overlook this new phenomenon.
Concern has also been expressed over the rapid erosion of traditional
values which were the props of family life and guaranteed protection and
maintenance of the weaker members of the family as well as care and guidance
to the children. The entire
family structure in these countries is now breaking up, the couples’
personal life is devoid of any spark of affection and none among the spouses
has the least desire to accept any responsibility of the other. An International symposium organized by the United Nations
Organization the previous year spotlighted the growing trend of violence to
the wives in the developed countries, use of physical force for the
satisfaction of sex and callousness shown in maintenance and guidance of the
children. All these emanate
from the disintegrating family life in the West.
Another Colloquy on ‘Violence in Society’ was organized by the
Ministry of Justice in Canada during October 1985.
There was a consensus among the participants in it that domestic
violence had assumed the shape of heinous offence which could no longer be
ignored by the mass media. Mr.
King, Public Prosecutor of Canada, expressed the view that factors chiefly
responsible for increase in this trend were alcoholism and addiction to
drugs. He pleaded that the
notice of these offences which destroyed peace of the home should be taken
by the police much in the same way as bank robberies and that they should be
made cognizable offence. The debate showed a general consent about the fact that
the situation in the United States of America was still worse where, on an
average, 16 percent couples were afflicted by this menace.
According to American Social Scientists 3,76,000 minors were
subjected to criminal assault and rape in a year while domestic violence
very often took the shape of physical assault of the wives, tying their
hands and feet and hanging them upside down, strangulating the assaulted
women and using violent means of sexual satisfaction.
The situation in the Soviet Russia is no better where, too, the
divorce is common and family structure is fast disintegrating.
