Domestic Violence Law Enacted In China

Domestic Violence is a legal term used everywhere around the world though the legal interpretation defers.

It is the same as any violent or aggressive behavior in a family which includes: spousal abuse, intimate partner violence, battering, or family violence. An act of violence against a room-mate is also seen as domestic violence. 

Violence can take many forms – physical, verbal, emotional, economic, religious and sexual abuse.

Records of domestic violence will never be accurate due to a number of unreported cases. Therefore it’s hard to point out which country has the highest record of family violence.

Globally, the term ‘domestic violence’ mostly tend to mean spousal abuse especially against a wife or female partner. Less attention is paid to men as victims of aggressive behaviors. Men equally suffer domestic abuse; arguably so, men also suffer rape.

In some countries, the laws may support and justify wife-battery if a case of infidelity is proven.

We shall not argue about laws or gender equality in this regard. Hopefully, with women empowerment campaigns under way, justice shall prevail against every man or woman who if found guilty of domestic violence.

In China, it is very common to see women attack their boyfriends or husbands in public. In most cases, Chinese men give in to the abuse due to strict laws which forbid men to lay hands on the opposite sex. Gender equality in this country seem to have granted women the freedom of aggressive behaviors.

Men would hardly report these ‘family matters’ to the police or seek court judgement due to the social stigma attached. It is a shame that the pain has to be borne by husbands and boyfriends – at least during the public show of womanliness.

Going to court or reporting such domestic violence to the police is seen as weakness on the side of male partners. 

Whatever laws that granted ‘some irresponsible Chinese women’ powers to trample on their husbands has been re-visited by the judiciary. Everyone now has the right to speak up and be treated equally in the eye of the law.

From today 3 March, ‘China’s first law on domestic violence has taken effect this week. Under the new law, domestic violence is no longer considered a “family matter,” but a legal issue that demands action from courts and the police’.