There are many examples of violence, which are based on the culture of
dominance. I would like to share few, which I consider most heinous and most
important for discussion and questioning its nature!
Violence against Women
The violence against women and girls is recognized as an epidemic in
almost every countries in the world. The horrifying situation about the
violence against women not merely affecting women physically, but the social
and health consequences of violence against women is equally horrifying in the
world. In 1994, the World Bank’s study based on ten risk factors facing women
in this age group, rape and domestic violence rated higher than cancer, motor
vehicle accidents, war and malaria. Moreover, several studies have revealed
increasing links between violence against women and HIV/AIDS. Women who have
experienced violence are at a higher risk of HIV infection: a survey among
1,366 South African women showed that women who were beaten by their partners
were 48 percent more likely to be infected with HIV than those who were not.
The violence against women is also a profound health problem, sapping women
energy; injure women self confidence and self esteem.
The violence against women has been seen as the problem of sheer
violation of human rights and also being considered as legal matter. But, the
tentacle of culture, such as patriarchy, masculinity, gender, the idea about
womanhood is significant in increasing the incidence of violence against women
globally. In fact, the magnitude of this problem is cultural and
socialization. A man are born and brought up in a society, where man controls
almost everything and the essence of ownership also replicated in the community
and in the relationship. The violence against women does not confine in the marital
relationship only. A report shows that at global level, there are ‘10% to over
50% of women report being hit or otherwise physically harmed by an intimate
male partner at some point in their lives’.
The Violence against women and gender based violence is not simply a
phenomenon of region, religion, least economically developed countries. This is
prevalent in everywhere in the world. According to state statistics, about 18%
of women are being sexually abused in the U.S. According to the UN Report on violence
against women, ‘the condition in other developed countries such as Denmark,
Germany, Spain, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom etc. is no better. In the
U.S., the Department of Justice reported that, every year; 3-4 million women
are battered by their husbands or partners.
Even in Sweden, which ranks high in the gender-related index, 66% of the
18650 reported cases of violence on women in 1996 were of domestic assault.
Further 45% of 681 offences of homicide recorded in England and Wales in 1996
involved women killed by their spouses or lovers. On the other hand, the
statistical data from the developing countries like Antigua, Barbados,
Columbia, Chile, Ecuador, Guatemala, Sri Lanka and others reveals widespread
prevalence of physical and sexual abuse on women.
In a study of 796 women from Japan carried out by Domestic Violence
Group shows that 59% reported physical abuse, 66% emotional abuse and 60%
reported sexual abuse. Studies from African countries, Kenya, Uganda and
Tanzania reveal that 42% women are subjected to physical abuse at their homes.
In China, a conclusive evidence of wife battering has been reported among 57%
women. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Convention on Elimination
of all forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) do enforce certain special
rights and privileges for women. But it is amazing that only 44 countries have
laws against domestic violence. Only 17 countries have made marital rape a
criminal offence & only 27 countries have passed laws on sexual harassment’.
Caste Based Violence:
This is another kind of violence, which is combined with culture,
religion and demeans the humanity in India. This is not misleading to equate
the violence based on caste is of the similar kind, which propagates violence
against race. In both kind of violence is based on treating the human being in
the concept of the purity and pollution.
India is highly stratified society and the caste system is based on
three principles, such as ‘predetermined social, cultural and economic rights
of each caste based on birth, the unequal and hierarchical division of these
rights among the castes and provision of strong social ostracism supported by
social and religious ideology to maintain the Hindu social order and the third
prescribed the social mechanism’ (Caste Violence and Dalit Derivation in India-
A Capability Approach, Venkatesh S).
The caste based violence is a normal cultural phenomenon in India.
Despite of numerous legal measures to discourage this nature of violence, but
the social norms and rules dominates in encouraging violent behavior towards
the lower caste in India. The conflict between the lower and higher caste is
not a new phenomenon. The massacre and killing of lower castes is regularly
reported but the humiliation, social ostracism, social penalties, inhuman
treatment are another dimension of violence which is based on the century old
religious and culture aspect of the society.
Statistically, the magnitude of the caste based violence in India is
presence in such a manner, which shows its presence in every aspect of social,
economic, cultural spectrum of Indian society. There are almost half of the
total number of lower castes (Dalits) do not have access the drinking water,
around 33% government health official refuse to visit lower caste home for
providing health services, 38% of lower caste children sit separately in the
government school. Even in market based social development indicators, the
lower castes are allowed to take the taste of fruit of development because
widespread denial in the market places and not buying and selling product to
them.
Despite of the constitutional provision to abolishing untouchability and
discrimination against lower castes, around 64% of lower caste are not allowed
to enter Hindu temple for performing the religious rites and in almost 50%
Indian villages, the lower castes are prevented to access cremation ground. The
crime against the lower castes is continuously taking place in India. According
to the official crime statistics, According to official Indian crime
statistics, averaged over the period 2001-2005, this has been recorded that, ‘27
atrocities against Dalits every day, 13 Dalits murdered every
week, 5 Dalits’ homes or possessions burnt every week, 6 Dalits kidnapped or
abducted every week, 3 Dalit women raped every day, 11 Dalits beaten every
day, a crime committed against a Dalit every 18 minutes’
The culture of dominance and competition are manifested in the form of
violation as well violation of human rights. In a survey conducted by BBC Pulse
of Africa Survey in 2004, this shows that there is strong desire to preserve
ethnic tradition with 78% in Kenya to 95% in Malawi. In this context, this
neither pragmatic nor sensible to ignore the cultural views of the people, when
the development polices and implementation is evolved in these countries and
regions. Amartya Sen openly shares that ‘cultural influence can make
a major difference of human behavior, which can be critical to economic
successes’.
