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Although society is increasingly developing, moving towards equality between men and women, gender-based violence, especially against women and children, still occurs, causing pain in society.
Heartbreaking incidents
It is heartbreaking that in the first days of responding to the Month of Action for Gender Equality and Prevention and Response to Gender-Based Violence 2024 (from November 15 to December 15), a tragic incident occurred in Hai Duong, taking the life of a young woman.
The heartbreaking story happened on November 18. A couple from Bac Kan province in their twenties came to Hai Duong to work as workers and rented a room in Cam Phuc commune (Cam Giang). Due to a conflict, the husband used a fire extinguisher to hit his wife several times on the head, causing her death. The exact cause and the family conflict are not yet known, but from both social and family perspectives, the act of abusing a wife leading to death is a violation of the law, a violation of women's rights, and must be condemned and eliminated.
Last July, the incident of a stepfather using an electric baton to beat his wife's 11-year-old child occurred in Tien Dong commune (Tu Ky), also causing much public outrage. It is known that the child went out without permission, which made the father angry. He used an electric baton to beat the child, causing some bruises to appear on the child's arms and back.
The family said that the child often went out without asking permission, which was the reason why the stepfather beat him. However, the father's violent behavior is also unacceptable because it can harm the child's health and spirit, and violate the law.
Not only physical violence but also many other cases of gender-based violence are very reprehensible. The leader of the Hai Duong City Women's Union said that the unit once received a petition for help from a man in the area. At first, when reading the petition, everyone thought that this was a case of "reverse violence" because the victim of the violence was a man. This man said that his family life was very happy, there were no major conflicts, but his wife suddenly insisted on a divorce, causing him to collapse mentally.
But after the Women's Union officials got involved in investigating the matter, everything came to light, showing that the husband had used psychological tricks on his wife and everyone else to gain custody of the child. In fact, due to differences in culture and lifestyle, the wife had to endure many pressures while living with her husband's family. The husband's family did not share but always criticized her. Even her father-in-law and husband often used harsh, vulgar words to curse her. So when asked, she said that her greatest wish was to get a divorce to have a chance to start her life over. The pain and sincerity were clearly shown on the woman's face and eyes, which were completely different from the words in the petition for help that her husband hired a lawyer to write for him.
Need to act together
Information at the launching ceremony of the Month of Action for Gender Equality and Prevention and Response to Gender-Based Violence in 2024 recently pointed out that, in Hai Duong in recent times, besides the achieved results, the work on gender equality and women's advancement in the province still has many difficulties and challenges that need attention.
That is the situation of violence, abuse, trafficking of women and children, and sex selection at birth still exists and is complicated. Gender stereotypes still exist quite commonly among the people, especially in the family, the idea that men must be the "pillars" and women must be housewives, taking care of the family causes distortion in the roles of each gender, leading to a lack of sharing of responsibilities in family work and participation in social activities. Domestic violence still occurs...
There are currently no statistics and it is impossible to accurately count cases and acts of gender-based violence. However, we still regularly hear about such cases. This year, the Kinh Mon Women's Union has mediated 5 cases of domestic violence. The Medical Centers of Thanh Ha and Nam Sach districts have received at least 4 cases of women being abused by their husbands for treatment. From 2023 to now, there have been about 50 cases of child abuse in the province...
“Gender-based violence still occurs in society today. The evidence is that in recent times, the Kinh Mon Women’s Union has had to mediate conflicts and domestic violence, and mobilize women to overcome family barriers to participate in social work,” said Ms. Le Thi Chinh, President of the Kinh Mon Town Women’s Union.
In recent times, Hai Duong has implemented many activities to achieve gender equality goals and prevent and respond to gender-based violence. However, to limit this situation and move towards full equality for both men and women, according to the leader of the Propaganda and Legal Policy Department (Hai Duong Provincial Women's Union), the whole society needs to join hands. Strengthen communication work on all platforms. Each person, especially women, needs to improve their socio-economic capacity. It is necessary to clearly recognize that when violence occurs, both men and women are hurt, physically and mentally, affecting the quality of life. From there, each person can have a more appropriate response to events in life related to gender equality.
NGOC THANHAccording to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, gender-based violence is violence that is directed against a person on the basis of that person's gender. It includes acts that result in physical, psychological or sexual harm, threats of such acts, coercion and other deprivations of liberty...
