Requiring children to study until 2-3 am and always getting 10 points is domestic violence?

There were opinions raising this issue when discussing the draft Law on Domestic Violence Prevention and Control (amended) at the 10th session of the National Assembly Standing Committee on the afternoon of April 16.

Nearly 1 in 3 women experience violence from their husbands.

Authorized by the Prime Minister to present the report, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung emphasized that, in addition to the achieved results, domestic violence is still a painful and difficult problem in Vietnam. Many cases have serious consequences, are complicated, sophisticated, unpredictable and difficult to handle with current legal regulations.

Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Nguyen Van Hung.

According to the results of a national survey published in 20201, nearly 1 in 3 women (32%) have been physically or sexually abused by their husbands. Notably, 90.4% of women who have been physically or sexually abused by their husbands did not seek help, while only 4.8% sought help from the police.

The survey results also show that in 2019, domestic violence against women caused a loss of 1.8% of GDP (an increase of 0.2% compared to 2012). Not only against women, but domestic violence against children and the elderly is also common. Of the children who were sexually abused, up to 21.3% were abused by family members.

“Domestic violence tends to be more serious, diverse and complicated, leaving serious consequences for many families, causing great damage to the whole society. If not resolved promptly, domestic violence will threaten the sustainable development of the family, erode the good traditional cultural values ​​of the nation, weaken the development momentum and be a barrier to the sustainable development of the country” – Minister Nguyen Van Hung emphasized that amending the current law is really necessary.

Based on the above reality, Chairwoman of the Social Committee Nguyen Thuy Anh said that the reviewing agency agreed with the need to amend the law. However, she suggested that the drafting agency, in the process of amending the Law, continue to closely follow the human rights approach, ensure human rights, especially for special subjects such as women, children, and the elderly, prioritize the legitimate aspirations of victims of domestic violence, respect the rights of citizens when handling violations of domestic violence, and pay attention to issues related to culture, family, psychological characteristics of target groups as well as regional, regional, and ethnic characteristics.

Mental torment is sometimes worse than physical torment.

During the discussion, National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue emphasized that the submission of the revised Law on Domestic Violence Prevention and Control at the beginning of the term shows great concern from the Party, the State and the whole society because the physical and mental consequences of domestic violence are very serious, especially for women, children and "many husbands also suffer from domestic violence".

National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue.

Proposing to clarify the responsibilities of agencies and organizations in presiding over and coordinating the implementation of this work, Mr. Vuong Dinh Hue raised the issue that if the incident is not detected and handled promptly, whose responsibility is it? If it is not clear, it will be difficult to determine when the consequences of the incident are very serious.

“If all of you worry without clear responsibilities, it may not be as good as one person worrying. Most cases of domestic violence are discovered by the press,” said the National Assembly Chairman.

Commenting on the draft content, Mr. Vuong Dinh Hue assessed that the protection of victims of mental and sexual violence is unclear, while mental torment is sometimes more severe than physical.

Citing expert opinions that choosing the sex of the fetus is also domestic violence, the National Assembly Chairman cited the reality that “in many cases of unwanted pregnancies, the husbands torture them terribly”. The situation of stepmothers abusing their husband’s children, and stepfathers and lovers abusing and abusing their wives’ children is very common, causing social outrage, so the Judiciary needs to pay special attention to this group.

Speaking at the discussion session, Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son pointed out that parents have too high expectations for their children, leading to the requirement that they study until 2-3 am, as well as the desire for their children to get 10 points, to follow their parents' career, and to become the pride of their parents, creating pressure that exceeds the children's capacity and ability. Therefore, the draft needs to express more clearly about not causing too much pressure in work and study.

Minister of Education and Training Nguyen Kim Son speaks at the discussion session. Photo: National Assembly

Mr. Nguyen Kim Son said that if there are regulations prohibiting the act of abandoning parents, the elderly not taking care of, or abandoning children, then we should also consider and consider whether acts such as parents but not fulfilling the responsibility of teaching their children or the responsibility of coordinating with the school are considered domestic violence. "In addition to raising, there is also teaching but not teaching, and secondly, teaching excessively should be considered violence against students"./.