Reproductive Violence

By Tahir MehdiJun 7 2016 (Dawn, Pakistan)Two things happened in Islamabad on the same day recently, one pertaining to the Council of Islamic Ideology and the other to Pemra, the electronic media regulator. CII sanctioned `lightly beating` of wives and Pemra banned (and then partially withdrew) advertisements of contraceptives. The two seemingly unrelated events have more than their timing in common. Their relationship is intriguing and intense and covered by the same ignorance that so many in our society defend in the name of religion and culture.But before I dilate on the link between the two, let me first contradict the maulanas who topped their shenanigans by declaring that wife-beating does not exist in our beloved country which is inhabited by pious Muslims. It not only exists, it is rampant.There is no doubt that this areais understudied and lacks specific data and information but whatever little is available makes it evident that wifebeating is the rule and not an exception. A small study (which I helped to conduct) a few years ago in two villages of central Punjab revealed that two in every three women were beaten by their husbands.A quarter of them were not only slapped, boxed and shoved but beaten with sticks and shoes at a frequency of `often` to `regularly`. Nine of the 190 women who were interviewed reported having bled at least once as a result of being beaten, and seven had one of their bones broken in a single bout.If these horrendous statistics could be extra...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - Category: Global & Universal Authors: Tags: Asia-Pacific Crime & Justice Education Gender Gender Violence Global Governance Headlines Health Human Rights Religion Women's Health Source Type: news