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Beliefs and attitudes towards male domestic violence in South Kivu

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par Ndabuli Theophile Mugisho
University of KwaZulu Natal - Master 2011
  

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3.7 Conclusion

This chapter has dealt with the different approaches that the researcher used in order to collect the data he needed for this research. These approaches included the documentary methods, the focus group discussions with in-depth interviews and data analysis. The researcher was motivated to use focus group discussions as the right tool of information collection through qualitative method because he believed it conceptualises the South Kivu males' beliefs and attitudes about domestic abuse. In addition, application of violence in homes remains a social phenomenon as this is widely induced by community peer norms. The researcher also used the in-depth interview as an auxiliary method in this study. In effect, this enabled him to learn the respondents' individual points of view that could be difficult to divulge in focus group discussions regarding domestic violence.

CHAPTER FOUR: RESEARCH DATA ANALYSIS

4.1 Introduction

This chapter reviews and analyses the results that the researcher collected from the different focus group and in-depth interviews he organised on the field. The research dealt with beliefs and attitudes towards male domestic violence in South Kivu. The findings were gathered from two groups of male participants, particularly from Bukavu. In order to maintain confidentiality of the interviewees, the researcher reported their opinions by quoting them word for word under hidden identities. The raison d'être for using pseudonyms was that the different interviewees did not allow the researcher to use their respective names along with their attitudes and beliefs in this research. In fact, the participants' beliefs and attitudes were at times illegal. For that reason, the researcher and informants agreed to associate false names that they have chosen with their respective opinions.

Furthermore, the researcher wants to clarify how men's beliefs and attitudes are strong factors of leading to a proliferation of domestic violence in the province. This said, the chapter also connects men's beliefs and attitudes and domestic violence in the province, which is manipulated by social and cultural norms. After the researcher had analysed the data, he categorized the findings into themes and sub-themes, and referred to the existing literature review for discussion.

The chapter contains five main subheadings. The first section deals with the characteristics of the target population of study. The second presents the key determinants of men's violent beliefs and attitudes in the province. The third and the fourth sections concern respectively the beliefs and attitudes of men regarding domestic violence and the final section is a concluding paragraph.

4.2 Sample characteristics

This section presents the socio-demographic characteristics of the sample of this research. All the men who involved in the talks; ie focus group discussions and interviews were from South Kivu and they were representative for all the different tribes and religions that exist in the province. The majority of them originated from the Shi ethnic group which is the largest of all. The remaining participants belonged to other different tribes that exist in the province. Seven men were selected to participate in the focus group interviews in each of the two teams that were formed but some of them were absent the day of the interviews. Later on, three of those who attended were selected from each group to participate to the in-depth interviews. The youngest interviewee was 26 and the oldest was 69 years old. These interviewees had different marital, educational and social statuses; one of them was a local leader. Those who had divorced or widowed blamed domestic violence and some of these participants avowed to have applied violence in their homes for a reason or another.

4.3 Key determinants of males' beliefs and attitudes.

There exist various factors that cause men apply violence in their families but for South Kivu men, the participants pointed out the following reasons: society, masculinity and assertion of power.

4. 3.1 Society

South Kivu men who participated to the interviews revealed that society greatly fosters domestic violence. They advanced that impunity, making domestic violence a culture, accepting and tolerating domestic violence, gender roles and unfair power distribution between men and women and patriarchy are the main ways society uses to foster men's domestic violence in the area. Below are the participants' opinions by category:

Views on social impunity of abusers

Dira: South Kivu never punishes violence in the home. I think if some men behave so, it is because of the justice here and no one cares about it. For instance, no child or woman can be listened to if they take their father or husband to justice for abuse.

Tongo: All of you here are part of this society and you are not obliged to abuse your
wives even if you know nobody will punish you. I think this is an individual issue
because if we all here can decide not to abuse women, society will not pursue us and

so we can change it. On the contrary, society will follow people's way and so you can make society abolish violence on women.

Views on culture of domestic violence

Bitu: uh uh uh, once a family member has disturbed you, you must show her how angry you are; this is our culture. Traditions allow that a man can whip his wife because certainly she will go around mouthing about you badly and you will be ridiculed. The culture here states that man's rules must prevail and apply to women because they are like children, they get what they cause and they are informed of this.

Dira: Traditionally, many women have been abused in a way or another and so they are not ignorant of what goes on in households. In case you slap her, she won't say anything about you but if you don't she will say she is your medicine. Such bad boasting about you will make you angry again and then you seriously react (beat her). But if she runs, you let her go and wait for the next turn. But me, no matter, if she runs I will trap her and catch her and then I will show her what I am made of.

Comanda: It is right that she may run but as a man, I will do all my best to get her until she feels who I am. Hey, this is simply our culture. It's the culture of this land, since our ancestors.

Dondo: To me, I can't let her without touching on her. She provoked me, so she must get it right. This is the way of life here. She did it; she must feel me, I am the man. Women have been living that since the creation of Adam and Eve.

Views on acceptability and tolerability of domestic violence.

Dira: Society knows and understands the context in which man can beat the wife; if she refuses to do what I tell her or if she keeps nagging me.

Bitu: Society has set some contexts in which we have the right to correct women like when she hits or throws something at the man or responds to you arrogantly.

Joco: Men here cannot tolerate a woman having sex with another man and refuses to have sex with the husband or she turns the children against the man.

Fikiri: My brothers have said the necessary but we all know that no man can understand or stand the woman who humiliates him in front of his friends or relatives, like refusing him food or any order. The society is aware of everything; people say `makambo ya mobali na mwasi, kokota te!' ( never mingle with issues regarding a wife with her husband).

Tongo: Violence will break that harmony and beating family members or the wife, I frankly fear to hurt them physically, morally or spiritually. I must forgive and tolerate. Tell me, you beat your wife and at night you feel cold, she will not... [people hum in the hall], you see! But besides, a woman is also a human being just like you and me [continuous murmurs in the hall].

Golo: You guys, I cannot understand you people here. How can you behave this way toward the mother of your children? She is your wife, ok? Are words not enough to change family members? I think all this is to destroy the home and not to redress as you say.

Views on gender roles and unfair power

Joco: In a house of a man, a woman cannot inherit. This means that the power of men is strong and high .What will happen when the family is attacked? She has no force to affront the invader. No, women are made for the kitchen.

Dira: In my village, I have never seen a woman or a girl taking the name of the man who has died. If no girl, that man died like a dog, then his brothers are there to control everything.

Fikiri: A man needs authority because it helps him achieve his `goal'. Man uses his social and physical power willingly or unwillingly. This is why we decide not to send girls to school because it is loss of time and money. I would rather send a boy than a girl because the boy is helpful to my family. The girl will leave us and join her husband; you see that there is no interest to spend much on her.

Dondo: The girl will be married; she will leave me and goes to make her own family; How can she come from there to inherit in my compound? This is not our culture, in Europe, yes, but not here . Women know what they must do and we, men have our duties. And, you see, women and girls here are not allowed to eat some food. You come from this area, who is that girl or woman sharing chicken and milk with her father or husband?

Views on patriarchal society

Dira: This is not a matriarchal society. Here, man is the head of the family, not the wife. Up to man to put order in the home and not the woman or the children. Man is the head of the family and God knows that. You remember what happened to Lucifer with God in heaven! Yes, this is not a matriarchal system.

Bitu: I agree. When you are the head, you must express your authority every time and you continue in the same way. In a patriarchal society like here, men are stronger than women. This is our culture here; it is from God that men `rule' families and not women.

Comanda: Sure, even our children should know that the father is the father. Society stipulates that in patriarchal society man is the supreme authority in the family, clan and tribe.

Discussion

The outcomes of this research revealed that society is an important factor that makes South Kivu men nurture violent beliefs and attitudes towards domestic violence. In focus group interviews, the interviewees confirmed that the influence of society on individuals is strong and no one can avoid it. In this way, it is society that dictates the social and customary rules that must guide people by favouring the abusers.

In the same focus group discussion, Dira confirmed that society encourages domestic violence through different ways and one of them is social impunity. This is supported by Amnesty International (2006) as they state that men often resort to domestic violence because the abusers who commit it are not sanctioned, not even taken to justice. In this way, South Kivu women who suffer domestic violence are reluctant to take their husbands to justice as society considers it as illogical and discreditable. Despite this, Yavana (2008) asserts that the few wives who attempted to report the abuse to local justice officials found their cases null because of the police and justice's partiality. This epitomizes the Congolese institutional unfairness to address household abuse. To Amnesty International (2006), such a situation propels domestic abuse countrywide as `they never treat household violence as a crime but as a home dispute' and besides, the `court does not punish exemplarily home abusers'. Due to this, Bahige (1994:329) confirms that domestic violence will always spread as long as the society together with the political system in place cannot defend the victims' rights. Society's failure to address domestic violence discourages the victims although this is a good motivation for the abusers, which make them blame the same society.

Conversely, Tongo opposes Dira's position in an in depth interview; for him, it is not society that makes people manifest violence in the home but rather individuals themselves because the latter want to abuse family members. He adds that since people are components of society, if they refuse to abuse their family members, these men will have changed the

society and not the society to change them. He believes man conceived society and all the rules that govern it; therefore, men can also change them if they wish.

In addition, the discourses of the participants above regarding men's domestic violence confirm that society is for violence in homes as it is a social culture. Mayer (2000:71) considers culture as a vehicle within which domestic violence occurs. For him, it is a set of specific and enduring social customs, traditions, values and behavioural patterns that are widespread and normal to a given group of persons who live in an area. These cultural factors impact the abuser's behaviour, which explains his use of violence in the home. In the view of Bitu, culture says that man's rules must prevail and apply in the home. This entails that society has taught men the way they behave abusively in their homes toward women. In this context, Parker and Tritter (2006:23) say that such social culture, though destructive, recognizes men's domestic violent behaviours and beliefs culturally and socially. In one word, society has arranged customs and traditions and even bodies that dictate men how to consider women.

In an in-depth discussion, Dondo states that a woman and any other family member cannot oppose him because he must do his best until the woman `feels' who he is. This is culturally supported by men in South Kivu. Rose-Innes (2006:3) and Bulonza (2006:32) corroborate that the customs of some African societies are behind men's view of domestic violence as normal and part of family daily routine. In this view, men who are violent in their homes, particularly towards women, are trying to confirm to the victims that they are reacting to the norms and the customs of society. Accordingly, Hatari (1999:85) confirms that 42% of women are domestically abused in the DRC in different forms by their husbands. This is the microcosm that, culturally, women always suffer men's violence even if man has failed to control his violent behaviours when he has been provoked. Summy (1995:10) ascertains that the culture of domestic violence builds on the `values that encourage the conviction that women cannot oppose men's domestic violence because of their obedience towards men in society'. This concludes that both domestic violence and coercion always walk abreast and traditions encourage men to be their initiators.

In other words, the positions of Bitu and Dondo openly boost of the fact that the culture in South Kivu allows men to abuse family members while women are not allowed. This actually means that there exist pre-established cultural norms that society has instilled into men's minds, for example, male violence is instinctive, natural and uncontrollable. For the woman, the same society stipulates that she should be submissive to men's beliefs, no matter harmful or not they are. Therefore, Finkelhor (1998:78) underscores that men often believe that their violent beliefs are consistent with their culturally established privileges.

The majority of the respondents in focus group discussions confirmed that social tolerability and acceptance of men's domestic violence encourage abusers to abuse family members. They also confirmed that domestic violence in all its forms is not viewed as a social threat. Indeed, this means that family abuse is not considered as a socially abhorrent act; that is why it does not boost social controversies. Actually, in South Kivu, everyone is aware of domestic violence but they cannot mingle with it as it must not be combated (Ruhamya, 2007). This explains the reasons why Bitu and Fikiri use the pronoun `we `and `our'.

The South Kivu social environment should move from considering domestic violence as a man's right that is socially understandable to a more accepting, emphatic perspective that sees it as a social evil that must be stopped. Participants admitted that men are socially excused if they beat the wife in order to put her right. This means that South Kivu men have the social go-ahead to abuse family members and the wife in any circumstances even if the woman threatens to quit the abusive home. Zihindula (2009:73) admits that men's violence towards family members is more condoned particularly toward females than women's abuse towards males. Most of the interviewees to this dissertation believed that men have the full right to hit the wife in case she beats him or shows him insubordination.

However, this belief was opposed by some of the participants in focus group discussions. Through Golo and Tongo's statements, we find that some men oppose the rationalization of domestic violence. In this view, Hatari (1999:63) notes that the fact that society excuses the men who perpetrate violence in their homes but blames the victims highlights how unfair it is. In the mind of Tongo, domestic abuse is a social evil to prevent because of its awfulness.

Though a local leader, he believes that if a woman can be abused and feels the weight of harm, man should also accept abuse from woman and not make it a taboo or something horrible because both man and woman are human beings with feelings. To Finkelhor (1998:78), this implies that society should give the same rights to each of its members by shunning partiality that mostly favours men over women.

During the focus group discussions, the participants said that social disparity of gender roles furthers men's domestic violence. By saying that `women must stay in the kitchen' and `women know what they must do and we, men have our duties; women and girls here are not allowed to eat some food, who is that girl or woman sharing chicken and milk with her father or husband?', respectively Joco and Dondo highlight that society creates gender difference and roles in the home. This shows that traditional society has conceived activities and functions based on gender. In the same vein, Meel (2005:57) finds that gender difference builds around food as, in some African societies, there exist food for men, food for women and girls and food for children. For instance, based on some cultural taboos, COFAPRI (2010) discusses how DRC women and girls are not allowed to eat food like chicken, eggs, etc because they are typically reserved for mature men. Similarly, gender roles do not allow women to do some activities because they are weak to such jobs correctly or simply because it would be outrageous. This is why Joco and Dondo confirmed that South Kivu society considers as disgraceful and taboo (and so sanctions follow, like beating or cultural cleansing) if girls or women climb trees, climb or build a house, whistle, sing while cooking, sit on a mortar, sit legs crossed, sit with their father, beat a man until blood sheds, refuse sex to husband, etc. As a result, Vuningoma (2003:45) says that not respecting one of these social prescriptions gives right to man to apply violence and sometimes for married women, they can be repudiated and family reintegration will be conditioned by paying a fine to the village elders to mean `I will never repeat that'. Man, and not woman, is totally excusable if he abuses a family member due to breaking social norms and traditions as he is their protector (UNIFEM, 2007). Conversely, on his side, man is not affected by these norms, although he must observe very few of them like to sleep behind his wife in bed, eat in a pot (pan) or cook, etc.

Because of gender difference, girls do not have equal rights to accede to education like boys. The latter are given more chance compared to girls for the assumption that girls do not perform as well as boys at school. To Vuningoma (2003:88), girls are discriminated because once they are married; they will not be helpful for their own parents, thus, no reason to spend money on their education. Paluku (1998:95) opposes categorically such favouritism, which is another form of domestic abuse, because educating a girl is not a loss as some men may think, it is rather beneficial to the society because if you educate a girl, you have educated the whole nation. Besides, , in an in-depth discussion group, Fikiri and Dondo confirm that boys should go to study and girls stay home to carry out housework because they are meant to be wives in the future.

Power was another issue the interviewees believed cause violence in South Kivu homes. Chetkow-Yanoov (2000:98) and Mayer (2000:50) consider power as one of the triggers and currencies of any violence, including domestic abuse. Fikiri stated that no matter how, willingly or not, he exercises his power provided he achieves his target. This is what Chetkow-Yanoov (1997:33) calls `man's authority and ability to act and to get something happen'. This makes us better understand that domestic violence reflects power as the abuser's physical or social aptitude to hinder the victim's rights or subdue her. When an individual's power dominates another, this is power imbalance. In fact, the difference between the social and physical power of a woman and that of a man is unfair though it is from birth. Joco affirmed this: `our power (ie men's) is different from that of women, ours is high because we are men.' In other words, in a domestic violence context, there is an asymmetrical distribution of power between men and women because society gives more of it to men. This infers that this imbalanced distribution makes women suffer its negative consequences. As a striking example, Joco and Dira believe girls are not allowed to inherit their father's property once he dies. Even if he had only girl children, these girls cannot take over their father's property. In this case, the brother of the deceased man will inherit his brother's property. Bahige (1994:43) confirms that in some communities of the DRC, this brother is customarily even allowed to inherit the widow of his brother. The same writer says this helps the brother to fully take in charge the brother's orphans.

And finally the respondents, in both focus group and in-depth discussions, argued that South Kivu is a patriarchal society, where man has word and authority over everyone in the home. Dira asserts that, in a patriarchal society, man is the one who leads the family and not the woman or children. This is a strong patriarchal belief that depicts men as being the only ones who can manage the family and therefore apply correction (violence) in the home. Based on this statement, we find that men are encouraged not to seek peaceful means to handle their families because they consider family members as inferior and weak individuals, which triggers them to use violence simply because they are men. Similarly, Zillmann (1996:52) supports the belief of patriarchy as he corroborates that in men's thinking, women and girls are indisputably second class people in the home. During focus group discussions and in-depth interviews, we could hear men commenting in these words: `people who drag behind men', `naturally, a woman depends on man' or `that is the way God made it', `a woman can't rule here'. In the context of South Kivu, Hatari (1999:49) confirms that patriarchy is that form of organisation that society has set up to make man become the supreme authority at the levels of the home, the family, the clan and the tribe. Furthermore, this system requires that descent is reckoned in the male line with the children belonging to the father's lineage, which means his clan or tribe. This form of organisation requires that violence or the hidden threat of violence in order to maintain itself for ages throughout the society.

Normally, hierarchical difference in the home was another issue that favoured men in South Kivu. This social belief was noted in an in-depth contact, for instance when Bitu stated that a patriarchal society must be ruled by man and not woman. In fact, this depicted the unconditional aspect of family life in which he grew up until he became mature. In this line, Paluku (1998:76) confirms that power relations and gender dominance in families still give it all to the men, which characterises the approach to domestic violence in the homes. In other words, women will remain passive in order to preserve obedience and respect to the husband. As a result, Kitzinger (1994:144) argues that the men who abuse family members develop the ideas of male sexuality in the home. Thus hierarchy becomes portrayed in comparison with domestic violence and strengthened thanks to the culture of the entrenched notion of `heshima kwa bwana' meaning respect to the master (husband).

The DRC, and South Kivu in particular, is a society that is powerfully patriarchal as it is dominated by men, which means that most women are never given enough power and authority in the family, hence in society. This is what makes women be victims of men's control and abuse as this is reinforced by the patriarchal environment. Vuningoma (2003:31) maintains that women have been largely socialised to consider the delicate forms of control and violence in the homes as such. Still in the same context, Boonzaier (2008:192) also accentuates men believe violence towards women is an expansion of male authority in the personal sphere of a patriarchal society.

In fact, based on the feminist belief, Parker and Tritter (2006:42) reason that domestic violence is a fundamental factor of a patriarchal plan. This conveys that due to patriarchal system, men become empowered to control and subordinate easily women in particular and family members in general. If men were taught the errors of patriarchy, they could be kept from abusing family members and renounce to it.

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