Domestic abuse: The case of married women (Part 3)
Friday, July 17, 2020

Social scourge: Domestic violence increased under the lockdown, according to police PIC: VENTURESAFRICA.COM
What should be the response strategy of women to acts of abuse? This should start with acknowledgement of the following irrefutable facts. That in the absence of genuine remorse, the undignified behaviour of abusive men will worsen with time. That abusers are not minors. They are majors and therefore fully accountable for their actions.
It wouldn’t only be an absurd leap of logic but also morally reprehensible for abused women to be held responsible for their husbands’ perverted sense of right and wrong. Any outrageous and ill-conceived pursuit of a trajectory of self-reproach as a voluntary or even involuntary response to deliberate misdemeanours of abusers would be irrational. The bottom line? Resist any attempt by your abuser to browbeat you into guilt.
With both sides entrenched in legal battles and public spats, the risk to public health, trust in institutions, and the welfare of doctors grows by the day. It's time for cooler heads to prevail. The government and BDU must return to the negotiating table, not with threats, but with a shared commitment to resolve this crisis fairly and urgently.At the heart of this dispute lies a simple truth: doctors aren't just employees but guardians...