Surveillance photos from the incident that occurred on Friday 10 June at a restaurant in Tangshan, northern China, are now going viral.
Watch surveillance video below in the case
They show how a man becomes inappropriate and persistent in his attempt to check up on a woman in the early morning hours, and completely goes out of his mind and collection when she rejects him.
For her simple and clear no, being met with powerful blows and kicks. She is dragged out into the street for her hair, and is knocked unconscious. Not only does the violence affect her, but also her three girlfriends.
No one comes to the rescue of the four women. The other men in the restaurant storm in, but it is to contribute to corporal punishment that a woman has spoken out against a man. Other guests pick up phones to film the session, but do not intervene.
Watch video of the brutal assault here. TV 2 warns against strong impressions.
Glass bottles and chairs are thrown at the four women, who are forced to the ground. Even then, blows and kicks with zeal become long towards them. It is clear that they have nowhere to seek security.
– VIOLENT: Even when the women were forced to the ground, the violence that broke out on June 10 in a restaurant in Tangshan, northern China, did not stop. Photo: Video acquired by Reuters
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The incident has set fire to the well-known debate about violence against women. Chinese women demand to be heard and respected, in a country where violence against a partner was not a reason for divorce before 2001 and which only in 2016 made violence against a spouse illegal.
Facts about violence against women
- 35 percent of all women in the world will be exposed to violence during their lifetime. In some areas, however, this applies to as many as seven out of ten women.
- More than 600 million women live in countries where domestic violence is not prohibited.
- Every day, 137 women are killed by a family member.
- Up to 50 percent of all sexual assaults occur against girls under 16 years of age.
- 650 million of today’s women were married off before the age of 18.
- At least 200 million of today’s women have been subjected to genital mutilation.
- 72 percent of all victims of human trafficking are girls or women. Most of these are exploited for sexual purposes.
Source: UN–
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Amnesty: – Pure symbolic politics
On Saturday, police in Hebei province arrested nine men, charging them with assault and “provoking unrest.”
The police further stated that the four women had been transported to hospital. Two of them with very serious injuries, but none life-threatening.
Some state television channels are calling for the death penalty for the accused. It describes Amnesty’s political adviser, Gerald Folkvord, as a recognizable symbolic policy.
– Chinese authorities control the media in China, and will probably show with this that they crack down hard on the incident, but it quickly becomes symbolic politics, says Folkvord and emphasizes:
– Because as soon as someone criticizes the authorities for not doing enough for women’s rights and security, it is illegal.
– Women are considered less valuable
Folkvord has China as its special field, and explains how he thinks the country has painted itself into a corner by making China’s Communist Party (CCP) appear infallible and free from criticism:
– There are framework plans also in China to combat violence against women, but it can not be done only by introducing economic rights – and that from top to bottom. In order for attitudes to change, civil rights such as freedom of expression must be introduced. Women who have been subjected to violence must be able to stand up without being harassed in the media, or prosecuted for having criticized the authorities.
– Has the one-child policy pursued by China from 1979 to 2016 contributed to a more negative view of women in China?
– I have no basis for saying anything about that, but it is clear that the policy has made women perceive as less valuable. Girls and consequently women do not have the same opportunity as men to be able to contribute a good job and income to the family, and were therefore often chosen away.
– Imprisonment of women activists often goes unnoticed
Folkvord emphasizes that violence against women is a global problem, and that there are countless examples of how individual incidents often create international attention that puts pressure on the individual authority, but without it leading to lasting change.
– According to international reports, the gang rapes in India that shook the world in 2012 have not led to a safer or more law-abiding state for Indian women. It is also seen by more democratic countries such as the United States that women’s rights are curtailed and threatened, such as the right to abortion.
There are also a number of examples of violence against women being used strategically to further weaken the position of women in society, Amnesty’s political adviser points out:
– I remember well when the Darfur conflict broke out in 2003, and Arab militias that cooperated with the government systematically raped the local population. The response of local leaders was painful: Several said that the woman should hope that the child would not look Arabic, because then she and the child would be excluded from society.
Back in China, regime critic Lia Xiaobo is a prime example, Folkvord believes:
– When Liu Xiaobo received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2010, his wife Liu Xia was placed under house arrest for punishing him until Xiaobo died in prison in 2017. She had never committed activism, but had to pay a high price. Only in 2018 was she released.
– And how many can say that they know her name? Women who are imprisoned for direct or indirect activism often go unnoticed. Also in the media, Folkvord states.
– PRISON: When Liu Xiaobo won the Nobel Peace Prize for his activism and criticism of the regime in China, his wife Lia Xia was placed under house arrest indefinitely to punish her husband. Photo: HO / Reuters
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Violence in Norway: Large dark numbers
Compared with the mentioned countries, most Norwegian women are in a considerably better situation, but women in Norway are in no way exempt from incidents of violence.
A survey by the Resource Center for Violence and Traumatic Stress (RVTS), showed that every fourth woman has been exposed to some form of violence or threats of violence in Norway. However, the dark numbers are large, as several victims of violence link shame and guilt to being exposed to violence.
Consequently, much of the violence and abuse remains hidden from the police and the judiciary, as only a small proportion of victims seek help or medical treatment.
Nevertheless, more than 100,000 people stayed at one of the country’s crisis centers between 1992 and 2018. Every year, crisis centers in Norway have around 20,000 inquiries.
Pia Krüger Grönqvist is the head of the Crisis Center for Bergen and the surrounding area, which is also responsible for 17 surrounding municipalities. She believes the threshold for reporting must be significantly lower. Both for oneself and on behalf of others.
Krüger Grönqvist emphasizes that shame and guilt are never feelings victims of violence should feel:
– Violence knows neither position nor condition, and has major ripple effects for young and old. It happens in all societies and sections of society, even where one least believes it. It is important that people know there is help to be had, and that we know a lot about what it is like to live with violence.
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