Introduction – Tree on Violence – Montfort College
Marmara on Violence Against Women
Focused on the Violence of dowry held at the Mont Fort College under a beautiful tree.
26 March, 2014
Much of dangerous, abusive and violent behavior occurs in the privacy of people's homes committed by men against women. Domestic violence is a significant barrier in the empowerment of women, with consequences to a women’s health. Background characteristics such as education, age, marital duration, place of residence, caste, religion, sex of the head of the household, standard of living, work status of women, exposure to mass media and the autonomy of women with respect to decision making, freedom of movement and access to money are linked to domestic violence.
The students of Montfort Counseling College engaged in a stimulating discussion on all forms of violence against women including domestic violence; and how this violence also results in the violence of dowry. A group of thirty girls, all majoring in psychology, engaged in an urban-centric dialogue. How these young girls, in their mid-twenties, narrated stories of dowry violence experienced by their relatives and friends and how the law had never meted justice to these women. Their utmost wish was for the mindsets of parents to be changed.
With regards to the functioning of the law and the courts, the students felt there was a humongous discrepancy between the implementation and execution of the law. Also the students suggested that, if more men were involved in these discussions, the girls would feel more empowered.
The girls posed various demands towards policy making and the prospective candidates- they demanded for the revival of the entire processes of policy making decisions- from the laws to the courts to the parliament- the visibility of women to increase in local and national level representation.