NEWS
It's okay to beat girls
Media24.com, 6 April 2006
Nivashni Nair
Pietermaritzburg - A recent study indicates that KwaZulu-Natal schoolboys believe it is acceptable to beat their partners to "keep them in line".
Delegates shook their heads in disbelief at some of the responses from the young participants, when the survey, conducted in three schools in the south of the province, was presented at the Eighth World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion on Wednesday.
Reshma Sathiparsad of the University of KwaZulu-Natal told delegates most of the participants believed it is acceptable to beat their girlfriends or female partners.
One young man said beating a girl would mean there were "slim chances of her misbehaving" while another said hitting a girl meant you loved her because if you didn't you wouldn't bother to do so.
Sex equals love
Sathiparsad's study also found that sex was the central part of most of these relationships. Most of the participants felt that sex equals love and when told by the facilitator that there is nothing wrong with waiting to have sex at an older age, most laughed loudly.
Sathiparsad found that most of the participants believed there is nothing wrong with "forced sex" in a marriage.
"When we married, I can force you to have sex with me because I know that I pay my money to buy you. I paid my thousands," one participant said, laughing.
Infidelity acceptable
The participants also saw nothing wrong with infidelity. The youngsters believed that if a man wants sex, he could have it, even if it's not with his wife.
Sathiparsad said the study showed young South African men are "contesting violent masculinities".
She recommended that further education be implemented to make young men aware of women's rights as well as respect in a relationship.
Pietermaritzburg - A recent study indicates that KwaZulu-Natal schoolboys believe it is acceptable to beat their partners to "keep them in line".
Delegates shook their heads in disbelief at some of the responses from the young participants, when the survey, conducted in three schools in the south of the province, was presented at the Eighth World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion on Wednesday.
Reshma Sathiparsad of the University of KwaZulu-Natal told delegates most of the participants believed it is acceptable to beat their girlfriends or female partners.
One young man said beating a girl would mean there were "slim chances of her misbehaving" while another said hitting a girl meant you loved her because if you didn't you wouldn't bother to do so.
Sex equals love
Sathiparsad's study also found that sex was the central part of most of these relationships. Most of the participants felt that sex equals love and when told by the facilitator that there is nothing wrong with waiting to have sex at an older age, most laughed loudly.
Sathiparsad found that most of the participants believed there is nothing wrong with "forced sex" in a marriage.
"When we married, I can force you to have sex with me because I know that I pay my money to buy you. I paid my thousands," one participant said, laughing.
Infidelity acceptable
The participants also saw nothing wrong with infidelity. The youngsters believed that if a man wants sex, he could have it, even if it's not with his wife.
Sathiparsad said the study showed young South African men are "contesting violent masculinities".
She recommended that further education be implemented to make young men aware of women's rights as well as respect in a relationship.
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