Understanding Femicide: A Deep-Set Issue
Femicide is the killing of a girl or woman due to her gender. It is a targeted act that transcends age, culture, and geography. This form of violence stems from deep-seated hatred, intense hostility, and harmful misconceptions about women that have been reinforced over generations by individuals, groups, societies, communities, and villages. It is important to recognize that no one is born with hatred; rather, it is learned and nurtured through various factors such as family background, environment, education, drug addiction, sexual abuse of male children, culture, tradition, economic conditions, poverty, domestic violence, trauma, betrayal, adultery, homos3xuality, and misinterpreted theories.
There are individuals who suffer from phobias towards females, which can manifest into femicide. Assisted reproductive technology has introduced new possibilities for couples unable to conceive naturally, allowing them to choose their desired gender, often males. This preference contributes to the devaluation of the female gender, which contradicts the principle of “Qui non creat, non occidat,” meaning “He who does not create, should not kill.”
During a seminar on domestic violence, the coordinator provided statistics on the male gender, analyzing various categories such as children, married individuals, gays, reverend fathers, incarcerated individuals, mentally unstable people, drug addicts, widowers, single fathers, and celibates. He concluded that only a small percentage of men are eligible and ready for marriage, urging attendees to value the men in their lives. However, when I requested an analysis of the female gender, the coordinator did not provide one. There are indeed percentages of females who are lesbians, reverend sisters, married, mentally unstable, incarcerated, drug addicts, single mothers, widows, and celibates. It is essential to resist speculation about the balance of human genders, as this is beyond our control.
The Inescapable Reality of Gender Balance
It is impossible to accurately estimate the population of any gender or both genders in the world, as birth and death occur every second. This balance is ultimately in the hands of God Almighty, and no human or technology can control it. There is always a natural equilibrium in creation. Femicide occurs daily in various forms, with marriage being a common institution where it manifests. For example, a man recently had sexual intercourse with his wife just four days after undergoing a cesarean section, a major surgical procedure to deliver a child. This act was a flagrant disregard for her existence, disguised as fulfilling conjugal rights. Domestic violence is often a disguised form of femicide.
Some individuals marry with the intention of seeking revenge on the female gender due to childhood trauma witnessed. Many have died from domestic violence, yet it is normalized and ignored, with fingers pointing at the victims. It is ironic how society encourages endurance and patience in the face of femicide, allowing couples to hide under the umbrella of marriage to perpetrate acts of wickedness and murder. These situations are often dismissed as “husband and wife matters,” with the belief that they will resolve it themselves, unworthy of intervention until death occurs. Like slow poison, femicide creeps in and enjoys protection.
The Impact of Gender Preference
As a result of this issue, many women avoid marrying into certain states or local governments due to the extreme preference for male children, which could put their lives and dignity at risk. Some couples terminate pregnancies when scans reveal the unborn child is female, continuing until a male child is conceived or the process becomes risky. There have been horrifying cases where female children are killed at birth. Two years ago, a man smashed his five-day-old baby daughter against the wall and fled. The grieving mother tried to gather the pieces of her dead daughter, an impossible task, and lost her mind, leading to her hospitalization.
Who then becomes responsible for the surviving female children? Is it society, the state, their father, or the system that failed them? What is your role in femicide? Femicide hides in words, actions, or conduct. Sometimes, it does not appear violent. Some women are enablers of femicide. A simple comment from another woman, such as “Another girl? Let the next one be a boy,” may seem harmless but can unsettle the new mother, sowing seeds of dissatisfaction, anxiety, and self-blame. It is crucial to love oneself to live. A woman who terminates her pregnancy because the fetus is female does not love herself. What if she dies in the process? The man may continue his search for a male child until he finds one or dies trying.
Cultural and Biological Misconceptions
In some cultures, a man’s worth is tied to having male children, while men with only daughters are ridiculed and marginalized. If a family gives birth to all girls while another gives birth to all boys, why the conflict? Some women conceal the sex of their unborn child until birth to enjoy love and affection. Biologically, men carry XY chromosomes while women carry XX. Despite education, scientific knowledge, and civilization, women are still blamed for not birthing a son. This misplaced blame is a subtle form of femicide.
There are cases of incompatibility in the reproductive process that are often ignored. A man may struggle to have sons with his wife but easily have male children with another partner. This highlights the biological reality that the sex of a child is determined by the man, not the woman. Yet, society burdens the woman with this responsibility.
According to economists, human wants are insatiable. You cannot have it all. Enjoy the moment, enjoy the love, as no one lives forever to ensure continuity of whatever is left behind. Life is not a checklist to be completed, but a journey to eternity.
Conclusion: Say “No” to Femicide
Say “No” to femicide. Life must be valued, every life, regardless of gender. You do not know whether the family name you are desperate to preserve was once carried forward by a woman. Let’s cherish the girl child because the legacy of a man’s name is often preserved by his daughters.
