2015-07-30
A Chinese woman stands next to videos showing examples of domestic violence at an exhibition in Shanghai, in a file photo.
AFP
China has approved a final draft law aimed at combating domestic violence, including the violent punishment of children by parents, but leading feminists said the draft they saw comes amid growing expansion of police powers and will likely have little effect on the situation of women.
China’s cabinet, the State Council, signed off on the bill after a public consultation process during which non-government organizations (NGOs) and charities pointed out numerous problems with the ruling Chinese Communist Party’s approach.
According to the state-run news agency Xinhua, the bill requires police to “intervene immediately” once such reports are filed.
It also “defines clear-cut responsibilities for different social groups to prevent domestic violence, including government, social organizations, communities, schools and medical institutions,” the agency reported.
Social organizations and individuals are also required to take steps to prevent and report “physical and psychological abuse within families,” Xinhua said, without giving details of how this would be achieved in practice.
The government-backed All-China Women’s Federation (ACWF), estimates that nearly 25 percent of married women have suffered domestic violence, although this figure didn’t appear to include violence between unmarried couples.
Little change expected
Chinese feminists said they were unconvinced that the bill in its final form would usher in meaningful change for women.
Feminist activist Zhao Sile said she is worried that the bill will further extend police powers into the domestic realm, without offering genuine support for women’s rights.
“Right now, the National Security Law has already been passed, and it looks likely that the Overseas NGO Management bill will also pass into law,” Zhao said, in a reference to a draconian bill forcing overseas-funded NGOs to register with police or be ruled illegal.
Zhao said the government seems to be focusing on national security and “stability maintenance” concerns as a priority, while sweetening the latest package of legislation with some upgrades in public services. “But one thing that is very worrying about these upgrades in public services is that they could become another excuse for the abuse of police power, and add resources and legitimacy to a further inflation of the powers of police agencies,” Zhao told RFA.
“So, if you ask me … whether the passing of the Anti Domestic Violence Law will bring an improvement in domestic violence against women, I think that it will have some symbolic impact, and I think we can expect to see some stories [in the media] of successful police intervention in domestic violence cases next year,” she said.
“But it is a bit cosmetic, an attempt to make things look as if they are improving.”
