| Domestic violence has historically victimized millions of Chinese women. It continues to perniciously affect their lives, health and advancement today. The last decade has witnessed increasing public focus and action concerning its reduction. However, in China, domestic violence is still commonly regarded as a private or family issue, rather than a violation of women's rights that must elicit public intervention and remedy. As such, there continues to be considerable resistance and reluctance on the part of the State, legal institutions and the public to intervene in domestic violence.; Overall, this thesis argues and recommends that the State and its institutions need both legal and social reform measures to curb this widespread problem across China. It explores, historically, men-women relations in and out of the family, indicates the extent of domestic violence and its disastrous impact on women, families and society, and analyses the risk factors and root causes for such violence against Chinese women.; From a theoretical standpoint, this thesis examines domestic violence through the prisms of feminist and international human rights discourse, and argues that domestic violence against Chinese women is a reflection of the unequal power relations between Chinese men and women, and that the phenomenon serves to maintain women's subordination. Pointing out the obvious need for the State to intervene, the thesis examines China's existing legal mechanisms, namely, the marriage law, women's law, administrative law, and criminal law remedies for domestic violence. It also explores the criminal justice response to it from the perspective of battered women's experiences. The thesis argues that the current legal framework is deficient and problematic in terms of both law and enforcement, and that legal reform is imperative to end the impunity of batterers and to provide safe homes for women.; The search for effective legal responses to Chinese domestic violence necessitated a comparative evaluation of American federal and State responses to the problem. The evaluation demonstrates that the United States' holistic approach coupled with a strong law and order approach to domestic violence have resulted in significant progress in combating it. Applying the findings to China's specific situation, this thesis makes recommendations for legal reform in China. It also argues that apart from legal reform, for China to ultimately eradicate domestic violence against women, cultural, ideological and institutional gender equality must become reality. This slow and complex process must engage the committed effort of both the Chinese government and Chinese people. |
