Domestic violence must be treated like terrorism
Op-ed: Violence against women is not a defect that can sit around and wait patiently to be repaired; it’s a real war. And like in any other war, all available resources must be recruited to strike the enemy.
The murder of women is the most radical expression of this despicable phenomenon and is derived from it. For the murderous outburst to take place, however, there is a need for a fuse, which is the murderer’s narcissist personality, serious violence in the family he came from, or a cultural background which drives him to “avenge” what he perceives as unforgivable dishonor towards him.
Understanding the motives, the personal pathology and the social pathology is important for the development of prevention measures, just like understanding the reproduction and distribution system of viruses is required for the development of vaccinations, and just like understanding the historical and cultural motives of Muslim terrorists may help exterminate them.
This analogy must be expanded, however: Violence against women is not a defect that can sit around and wait patiently to be repaired, but a real war. And like in any other war, you don’t debate and you don’t investigate the roots of the hostility, but you recruit all available resources and hit the enemy.
Had we addressed violence against woman as an epidemic or as a terror offensive on half of mankind, we would have declared a state of emergency and used harsh measures against it. The measures include changing the perception through education, an efficient implementation of the law and urgently helping women who are being threatened. But the change is slow, the legal system is complicated, and there is much more awareness to suspicious objects than to the urgent danger a threatened woman is subject to.
When there is an epidemic or a wave of terror, we usually divert budgets that were allotted to missions that are not as urgent, and the same should be done in the field of education. For example, we should consider whether the education on gender equality isn’t more important, or at least equally important, than other matters related to the ideological battle for the Jewish perception.
The group therapy for violent men who wish to change their behavior is pretty efficient, but in the entire country there are only about 100 centers for the prevention of domestic violence, which also treat violent men, and the total number of patients in all of them is only several hundred a year. Most of them are not treated voluntarily, but because it’s an alternative to imprisonment. Only few of those who complete the small number of meetings imposed by the court agree to keep going to therapy out of a sincere desire to better their ways. There is a high chance that those who settle for the short treatment will go back to their old habits.
Some 2,500 prisoners, about one-sixth of the criminal prisoners in Israel’s jails, have been convicted over acts of violence against women, and the overwhelming majority abused or harmed women in their domestic circle. For most prisoners, this is not their first jail term, and some of them have been jailed six times following similar offenses. The number of families caught in the circle of violence is estimated at tens of thousands, and maybe even 200,000. These facts make a mockery of the claim that society is putting an effort into curbing the wave of violence against women.
There is a need for more social workers specializing in domestic violence and more hours of therapy for men who wish to quell their violence. There is a need for more skilled police officers in this field, and men who are considered ticking bombs must be locked up for many years. The new norm should be simple and decisive: Woe to anyone who raises a hand against his spouse even once. In light of the state of emergency we are in, we will treat him as an explosive device.
