Posted by Allison Fong
Domestic violence is a major issue throughout China. Legislation for the protection of domestic violence victims has recently been proposed in the mainland. China’s criminal laws lack provisions regarding the protection of domestic violence victims thus this proposed legislation is making headlines. However, the law would only apply to a small niche of the population due to its narrow definitions.This law, if passed, would only apply to married couples which means that many people would be left out. Domestic violence prevails in many relationships other than marriage and by excluding those individuals, China is failing to completely solve the issue of domestic violence that is very widespread in its society. In addition, the definition of domestic violence in the proposal only includes physical abuse. There are actually many kinds of domestic violence that exist such as emotional, verbal, financial, technological, intimidation, harassment, and sexual abuse. Although these types are extremely noteworthy, they are missing from this proposal. And as a result, the impact of this bill will be less influential as it furthermore excludes subgroups of domestic violence victims from protection.Although this legislation only considers a small niche of individuals, it is one step closer to resolving the grave issue of domestic violence in China. Hopefully in the future, China’s criminal laws will include the protection of all victims of the many types of domestic violence.
Domestic violence is a major issue throughout China. Legislation for the protection of domestic violence victims has recently been proposed in the mainland. China’s criminal laws lack provisions regarding the protection of domestic violence victims thus this proposed legislation is making headlines. However, the law would only apply to a small niche of the population due to its narrow definitions.This law, if passed, would only apply to married couples which means that many people would be left out. Domestic violence prevails in many relationships other than marriage and by excluding those individuals, China is failing to completely solve the issue of domestic violence that is very widespread in its society. In addition, the definition of domestic violence in the proposal only includes physical abuse. There are actually many kinds of domestic violence that exist such as emotional, verbal, financial, technological, intimidation, harassment, and sexual abuse. Although these types are extremely noteworthy, they are missing from this proposal. And as a result, the impact of this bill will be less influential as it furthermore excludes subgroups of domestic violence victims from protection.Although this legislation only considers a small niche of individuals, it is one step closer to resolving the grave issue of domestic violence in China. Hopefully in the future, China’s criminal laws will include the protection of all victims of the many types of domestic violence.