A Medieval Christian scholar propagated Rules of Marriage in the late 15th Century. These specified: When you see your wife commit an offence, don’t rush at her with insults and violent blows. First scold her sharply, bully and terrify her and if this doesn’t work, take up a stick and beat her. Soundly, for it is better to punish the body and correct the soul than to damage the soul and spare the body. Then readily beat her, not in rage but out of charity and concern for her soul, so that the beating will redound to your merit and her good. In traditional times and also till today domestic violence has various myths like this.
The problem of domestic violence against women is as old as the world even though the types, frequency, intensity and control of violence against women may vary from time to time or place to place. Domestic violence is a form of oppression which not only endangers the dignity of women as a person but also darkens her future.
There are different types of Domestic Violence and if we identify in our domestic situation any of the following, we may be a victim of domestic violence:
1. Physical Abuse:
Physical abuse is the most known form of domestic violence and includes the use of force against the victim resulting in injury (e.g. a punch or a kick, stabbing, shooting, choking, slapping, forcing you to use drugs, etc.) and it isn’t required that such injury should be a major one.
2. Emotional Abuse:
Emotional abuse includes the destruction of the victim’s self-esteem, and it is done by consistent insult, humiliation, or criticism. It is little unusual type of domestic violence hence difficult for many people to understand, since, it appears to be quite common in unhealthy relationships.
As a victim, one should be aware that in most states, emotional abuse solely not enough to bring a domestic violence action unless the abuse is so persistent and so significant that the relationship can be labelled extremely coercive.
3. Sexual Abuse:
Sexual abuse is the most common form of domestic violence and includes not only sexual assault and rape, but also harassment for instance, an unwelcome touching and other demeaning behaviours. Many people don’t realize how broadly sexual abuse is interpreted. For example, if you’ve ever been coerced into not using contraception (the pill, a condom, an IUD, etc.) or having an abortion, then you may have actually been sexually abused. This form of abuse is known as reproductive coercion.
4. Financial Abuse:
Financial abuse is perhaps the least obvious and it may take on many forms, such as a husband preventing his wife from obtaining an education or a job outside the home. It is extremely common, especially when families have pooled their money into joint accounts (with one partner controlling) and where there’s little or no family support system to help.
It is a different form of control, even though it is usually less obvious than physical or sexual abuse. In these cases victim lives on the mercy of abusive partner i.e. complete dependence on his or her partner for money and has no access to money except through the abusive partner. The abusive partner may withhold money for food, clothing, and more.
5. Psychological Abuse:
Psychological abuse is basically a term for intimidating, threatening, or fear causing behavior. This behavior must be persistent and significant. A one-time act will not amount to domestic violence. Different type of behaviours falls under the umbrella of psychological abuse. For instance not letting the victim to talk to people unless they have been given ‘permission,’ preventing the victim from leaving the house, threatening the victim with violence or blackmailing the victim for doing something, etc. Like emotional abuse even psychological abuse may not solely be enough to bring an action of domestic violence unless it’s very severe in nature.
