A group of representatives attending the recent National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Congress sessions submitted a draft proposal of a domestic violence law. The first-ever law on domestic violence in China has now entered the review process and is expected to go into effect in the near future.

Domestic violence is a problem that has aroused great concern in recent years. Feminists have also paid great attention to it because most victims of domestic violence are women. Although there are laws in place to protect women from spousal abuse, domestic violence cases are seldom prosecuted unless an incident results in serious injury or death. Some victims have even attempted to end relationships by resorting to violence and murder. The implementation of China's first domestic violence law will define the crime of domestic violence in the law and justice system, which will effectively reduce and stop the incidence of such violence.

According to a worldwide study, domestic violence is a largely unknown "disease" that is a major reason for women's injury. Statistics show that 75 percent of lower-class males and 22 percent of higher-class males beat their wives. In Mexico, 56.7 percent of urban females and 44.2 percent of rural females were beaten; in Norway, 25 percent of women have been physically or sexually abused by their spouses; in the United States, 28 percent of women have been abused at least once during their lifetime; in France, 2 million women are often abused by men; and in Germany, 4 million women are abused by their husbands. Investigations show that violence by husbands against their wives is common in Jewish households even though Jewish doctrine advocates punishment for abusers and compensation for the abused.

The circumcision of women in some African countries is a salient example of physical violence against women embedded in social customs. A study involving 3,210 women conducted in Northern Sudan found that 3,171 (98 percent) had been circumcised while only 39 women (1.2 percent) were not.

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