The unnatural order
View(s):Young activist Birendra Siriwardhana on why the youth need to fight gender-based violence -
As it was …
Committed to the cause: Birendra Siriwardhana talks to a village elder
Early mankind existed as nomadic hunter gatherers, neither at the top nor at the bottom of the food chain. The need to simultaneously forage for food and protect their offspring and temporary homes was simply too great for any one gender group to fulfiil Men spent most of the day out hunting and the night, protecting their families. Therefore the vital task of bringing up the young and keeping life sustaining fires ablaze fell to women. This equal delegation of responsibility guaranteed the perpetuation of the human species.
The change in attitude towards women likely began once mankind moved from hunter-gathering to permanent settlements. Since human skills and technology improved considerably, external threats receded as families were safe behind walls and barricades, and thus did the women’s role diminish to merely overseeing domestic activities while men sought to safeguard their homes while looking also to expanding the boundaries of their civilisations.
It is most likely that the respect for what women did and were indeed capable of doing, diminished as men became more hungry for power and states were founded on physical strength and military skills – foundations women were rarely part of. Since men were the protectors and defenders of their homes, property and material possessions, and women were beholden to them they were therefore seen as extensions of property, to be treated in any manner the man pleased. The birth as it was, of the patriarchal society!
This attitude remained so ingrained as the ‘natural’ order of things and it was not until the 19th century, during the Industrial Revolution and the beginning of the campaign for suffrage, that the long suppressed abilities of women began to be noticed and re-evaluated. The consequences of this reawakened outlook rocked the proverbial boat when men realised they had now added competition for their own jobs and livelihoods from a group that was hitherto under their subjugation – a group, as they re-discovered, equal to or better than men save in the physical domain. Bitter was the realisation that women no longer relied on men for economic support and/or protection, and thus did the weaker, less accomplished and insecure of men turn on women. They did so simply because they felt threatened; because the status quo of the ‘predominant’ gender was dissolved.
As it is …
Whilst almost all developed countries provide equal opportunity to the sexes today, it is no surprise that most of the imbalances exist in developing nations. Even in a world increasingly driven by intellect, there exists still the entrenched belief that physical dominance trumps cerebral capability giving rise to entitlement, impunity and belief in patriarchy – all fertile grounds for gender based discrimination, abuse and violence to flourish. The man is in most respects considered a superior being to a woman. Consequently women, (nearly 50% of the population in developing countries) are unable to contribute in a meaningful manner. Thus the vicious cycle … lack of education leading to less empowerment leading to poverty leading to discrimination, abuse and violence.
On the other hand, advanced gender equality effectively diminishes notions of entitlement, impunity and patriarchy, and that makes it conducive for the entirety of the potential workforce in developed countries – men and women alike – to contribute towards their nation’s economic well-being. The true foundation therefore of a nation’s well-being is the well-being and empowerment of the individual!
As it MUST be …
It is imperative that we understand that two evolutionary branches of society exist; one in which equality is paramount, and the other in which equality is akin to emasculation. In order to provide children of both these branches better chances of survival, we must strive to change the beliefs of those in the latter, by creating awareness and educating them that clinging to unfounded authority on the basis of physical dominance is as detrimental to them as it is to the women they subdue.
eal men don’t abuse!
In our world too, we must face the reality that in order to achieve the prosperity we so desire, we need re-think and re-calibrate our value system vis a vis women. In the same way the concept of equality for women must replace the system of patriarchal dominance as the predominant and most influential value. For that to happen, our mindset needs be changed. It is a fact that the genesis of mindset occurs best in the young, so it is imperative that we correct these deep-seated repressive notions in the youth.
And who better to do this than the youth, ourselves!