The Perils of Gender Issue: Violence against Women and Female Subjugation

The wide increase in misuse of women as sex-symbol in media has not only showcased females as a weaker gender, but also normalized lewd, offensive and salacious behavior. The erotic bouts of bed-scenes occasionally televised through small-screen cable vendors can similarly harm juvenile minds. Likewise, it cannot be refuted that Nepalese and Indian movies normalize the acts of stalking behavior and idolize aggressive behavior of lovebirds. However, stalling use of sensual and explicit content in media does not end the violence against women.

Increased sex-wise openness in the society is the righteous solution. All members of the society, regardless of age, sex and similar segregation, should be able to freely express their opinions on contemporary sexual issues. Wider discussions and debates on sexual behavior on both private and public platforms will make people feel more accountable towards their conduct. Free expression on sexual issues will also facilitate the creation of improvised code of sexual conduct that affirms mutually consensual sexual behavior.

As an American academic and social critic, Camille Paglia asserted —men know they are sexual exiles who wander the earth seeking satisfaction, craving and despising, never content.  It is equally contentious but, a popular belief regards that the men who get the most money become the most successful in relationships. Besides, a gender is being 'politicized' in the name of feminism which aims to destroy everything masculine. Last but not least, women are not oppressed in all circumstances, especially when cultural differences need to be construed as well. Owing to these stereotypical collective mindsets and dogmas, the battleground of gender issue is getting terribly horrific.

As defined by the United Nations, violence against women refers to any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life. Hence, the gender issue does not merely end with decline in the incidences of physical and sexual violence against women; it warrants strong resistance against the female subjugation and sexism.

In the South Asia, men, even the educated ones, tend to profile women into two groups — the girlfriend stuff and the wife stuff. According to these men, the girlfriend stuff is to be used towards fulfillment of romantic obsessions, while the wife stuff is to serve all at home. The prejudice against modern women is easily evident in the South Asian nations. If such prejudices against women seem to be remotely connected with the violence against women; the male-chauvinistic and patriarchal paradigm is to be blamed. For effective intervention against such injustice, incidences of all sorts of female subjugation must be incriminated, and justice should be dispensed to discourage the offenders.

People can be disciplined as they are growing and learning every day. All actions countering societal code of conduct warrant at least a warning and appropriate sanction conscionable as per their severity. Such stringent sanctions against all nature of sexual offences give the offenders an opportunity to reflect on their sexual history and correct their behavior.

The wide increase in misuse of women as sex-symbol in media has not only showcased females as a weaker gender, but also normalized lewd, offensive and salacious behavior. The erotic bouts of bed-scenes occasionally televised through small-screen cable vendors can similarly harm juvenile minds. Likewise, it cannot be refuted that Nepalese and Indian movies normalize the acts of stalking behavior and idolize aggressive behavior of lovebirds. However, stalling use of sensual and explicit content in media does not end the violence against women.

Increased sex-wise openness in the society is the righteous solution. All members of the society, regardless of age, sex and similar segregation, should be able to freely express their opinions on contemporary sexual issues. Wider discussions and debates on sexual behavior on both private and public platforms will make people feel more accountable towards their conduct. Free expression on sexual issues will also facilitate the creation of improvised code of sexual conduct that affirms mutually consensual sexual behavior.

As an American academic and social critic, Camille Paglia asserted —men know they are sexual exiles who wander the earth seeking satisfaction, craving and despising, never content.  It is equally contentious but, a popular belief regards that the men who get the most money become the most successful in relationships. Besides, a gender is being 'politicized' in the name of feminism which aims to destroy everything masculine. Last but not least, women are not oppressed in all circumstances, especially when cultural differences need to be construed as well. Owing to these stereotypical collective mindsets and dogmas, the battleground of gender issue is getting terribly horrific.

As defined by the United Nations, violence against women refers to any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life. Hence, the gender issue does not merely end with decline in the incidences of physical and sexual violence against women; it warrants strong resistance against the female subjugation and sexism.

In the South Asia, men, even the educated ones, tend to profile women into two groups — the girlfriend stuff and the wife stuff. According to these men, the girlfriend stuff is to be used towards fulfillment of romantic obsessions, while the wife stuff is to serve all at home. The prejudice against modern women is easily evident in the South Asian nations. If such prejudices against women seem to be remotely connected with the violence against women; the male-chauvinistic and patriarchal paradigm is to be blamed. For effective intervention against such injustice, incidences of all sorts of female subjugation must be incriminated, and justice should be dispensed to discourage the offenders.

People can be disciplined as they are growing and learning every day. All actions countering societal code of conduct warrant at least a warning and appropriate sanction conscionable as per their severity. Such stringent sanctions against all nature of sexual offences give the offenders an opportunity to reflect on their sexual history and correct their behavior.

If only cases of rapes and physical violence are brought to jurisdictions, the problems of violence against women will persist. In the contrast, if all sexual behavior of concerns is brought into attention of the related people; they will mostly correct themselves and never commit grave offence in the future. Disciplinary actions against behavior of concerns at academic institutions, workplaces and similar settings are one of the best ways to discipline people; thus significantly plummeting down the issues of violence against women and similar offences.

The discrepancies in the mindsets of affluent literate people and poor illiterate people are ever-increasing. This cleft is followed by ever-widening marginalization of under-served and disadvantaged people from the socio-politico-economic mainstays; which often result in their disobedience of societal code of conduct, contempt against elites and crime against other gender. Hence, the all sorts of inequalities and discrepancies should be nipped in bud through education, employment and equality. This is the only sustainable solution for the gender issue.

On the national level, effective rules and regulations should be chalked out to endorse permissible sexual behavior, persecute sexual offenders and empower women. Rescuing and rehabilitating victims of violence against women and dispensing justice to them should be at the forefront of the government and concomitant organizations. All in all, we all share some individual stake in curbing violence against women and empowering women for gender equality; let’s be a part of social change.