Obianuju Okeke

NEWSPAPER REPORTAGE OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN WOMEN IN NIGERIA. INTRODUCTION The World Health Organization estimates that over one in three women globally will be beaten, raped or otherwise abused in her lifetime. Since time immemorial, violence against women has been a widespread occurrence. In ancient Greece, women were often subjected to vicious killings to please the gods as well as honor killings. In India women are not recognized to the extent that abortion is permissible if it is confirmed that the child in the womb is a girl. In Africa young women or girls were buried alive together with a king or a male member of royalty died. Until this date, women are still experiencing more and more violence at the hands of society and tradition values assigned to women by men. Violence against women is a rampant harm to the basic right, freedom, health and welfare of women. Atsenuwa (1995, p.25) sees violence against women as any violation of women’s personhood, mental or physical integrity or freedom of movement. Most violence against women, according to Owasonoye (1999 p.19), are designed to control, rule and express authority. The issue of how to check brutality against women has been the worry of numerous nations of the world including Nigeria. In an offer to accomplish this, in 1995, the United Nations (UN) held a World Gathering in Geneva where its member states consented to wipe out all laws that oppress women. The point was to cause a feeling of sexual orientation balance. Be that as it may, gender-based violence seems to be on the increase passing by world reports. According to the National Population Commission and ICF International (2014), 16% of ever-partnered women aged 15-49 years are experience intimate partner physical or sexual violence at least once in their lifetime. In the northern part of Nigeria, specifically, young women are still flogged till date for alleged fornication. In Nigerian societies where practices such as gender inequality and gender violence thrive, if such practices are reported frequently in the mass media, it will go a long way in rearranging conflicting norms in the society, changing value systems and humanizing traditional systems and practices. Media messages can, thus, be used to mould the minds of the masses and influence their decisions and actions. Hence, this aim of this research study is to investigate the reportage of violence against women in Punch and Guardian newspapers between 2015 and 2016 in Nigeria. ARE WOMEN THE CAUSES OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE? On Thursday, 31st August 2017, the Lagos state commissioner for Women affairs and Poverty Alleviation (WAPA) Dr Lola Akande said that a large number of women are the cause of the rate of domestic violence in Nigeria based on their actions. The commissioner was represented by Mrs Olusola Falana, the Director of Women Development department (WAPA), at a programme organized by the women ministry in Lagos on the Management of domestic violence. She said that ‘It is no longer news that many women have lost their lives through domestic violence. The more we try to put the blame on the men folk, the more we will continue to turn blind eyes to the fact that many women are the cause of domestic violence we see today.’ She made the observation that women’s negligence, infidelity, use of abusive words, sophistication, misguided utterances among other causes were part of the driving forces behind domestic violence. She also did not spare the men folk too, and referred to any man who beat his wife as a beast who did not deserve to live with humans. She said that ‘No matter how provoked you may be as a man, please never raise your hands to beat your wife.’ The commissioner urged men to be understanding, tolerant, and to also learn to communicate better with their wives to prevent violence in marriages. The main aim of the programme according to Dr Akande was to explore all avenues to nip the scourge of domestic violence in the bud and it was organized on behalf of Governor Akinwumi Ambode’s commitment to stopping domestic violence in Lagos. Speaking earlier at the event, Mr Praise Fowowe, the principal consultant for the Centre for sex Education and Family life stated that communication is an effective way to resolving family issues, rather than turning to violence. He further stated communication was a sure way in avoiding occurring death cases arising from domestic violent cases. He commended the Lagos state government for organizing the programme, and commended them on their commitment to making individuals who had anger issues apply for therapeutic sessions. Also speaking at the event was Mrs Oluwabukola Salami, the Lagos state office of Public defender, and she urged women to get empowered so as to avoid total dependence on a man. She noted that women who are empowered are hardly victims of domestic violence because they contribute to the quota of finances needed in running a home and family. She urged women who were currently in abusive marriages to get help from agencies involved in such aspect to help in protecting them. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK The theories that were reviewed and found relevant to this study because of their theoretical application were the Agenda-setting Theory and the Gatekeeping Theory. AGENDA SETTING THEORY This explains that the mass media determine the issues that are regarded as important at a given time, in a society. That means that the press is significantly more than a conveyor of information and opinion and though it may not be able to tell its readers what it thinks. Maxwell McCombs and Donald Shaw (1972) corroborate the agenda setting theory by their research; In choosing and displaying news, editors, newsroom staff, and broadcasters play an important part in shaping political reality. Readers learn not only about a given issue from the amount of information in a news story and its position. the mass media may well determine the important issue that is, the media set the “agenda “of the campaign. The elements involved in agenda setting include: The quality or frequency of reporting Prominence given to the reports- headlines display, layout, time on radio and TV set The degree of conflicts enumerated in the reports Cumulative media-specific effects over time According to Roger and Dearing (1987), these authors point to the following main kinds of interaction or effects in their own model of Agenda Setting theory. Which entails; Mass media do influence the public agenda directly, presumably by weight of attention and media authority. The media agenda also has a n independent direct influence on the policy agenda, since it is used by politicians as a guide to public opinion. On some issues, the policy agenda has a direct and strong influence on the media. In applying the agenda-setting theory to this research, we argue that if the print media (newspapers) focus or emphasize on the issue of violence against women, it will make the public accord importance and understanding to such issues which will lead to attitudinal change. GATEKEEPING THEORY The Gate-keeping theory is a child of the Gate-keeping function of the mass media and communication. Kurt Lewin formed the term “Gate-keeping” at about 1951. He used the term to describe those individuals who control the “gates” or channels through which information or news passes from the source to the final consumers. Lewin points here that no media house no matter the size or level of operation, can transmitted all the messages it receives in the course of a day business. Some persons have to decide which news to transmit, which to defer its transmission to another time and date, which to modify, which to delete completely or which to kill out rightly. Such persons, according to Lewin (1951), open and close the gate that stands between the news sources and the receivers. It is also imperative to keep in mind the fact that Gate-Keeping as a media activity and function does not stop at opening and closing the news gate, or rejecting and accepting new/information for publication, it also involves the shaping and rejecting and accepting news/ information for publication, it also involves the shaping and re-shaping, display, timing, repetition etc of then news and information in the various media establishments. It is from the understanding from journalist that, apart from legal restrictions on what is to be published, they have a moral right to be socially responsible to their readers in whatever materials they package for them. Gatekeeping can take place at any level in the media house hierarchy; the reporter, editor or publisher. Factor that influence Gate- keeping decisions include; ownership pattern, management policy, perceived needs and preferences of the audiences, views held by the editor’s colleagues, influence of advertisers, legal considerations, availability of photographs of film footage, professional ethics, ideological perspectives and political orientation and so on. LITERATURE REVIEW Many cases of violence against women in Nigeria have been documented. These cases range from battering, sexual abuse, acid bath, marital rape, dowry-related violence to female genital mutilation, sexual harassment and intimidation at work; in educational institutions and elsewhere, trafficking in women and forced prostitution, child marriage, and so on. Several of these cases have been reported in Nigeria. In 1990, Charity Agbakuru, a beauty queen in Port Harcourt was documented as the first case of acid attack on a lady in Nigeria (Nkwocha 2000, p. 28). Another case of violence against women was Tina Isiekwe’s, a widow and staff of the Registry Department of First Bank, Marina, Lagos whose husband’s younger brother poured concentrated acid on her during the burial ceremony of her late husband in a village in Delta State, Nigeria. She died as a result of the third degree burns she sustained. DEFINITION AND DIMENSIONS OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE Sexual violence can be defined as infliction of sexually abusive act(s) on somebody. The act(s) may either be physical or verbal, but related to sex and directed to somebody who considers it (them) offensive. It may also involve the use or threat of force for the purpose of having sexual acts with somebody who is unwilling. For proper understanding of the term “sexual violence”, sexuality needs to be understood. ‘’Sexuality is a vital aspect of being human throughout life and covers sex, gender identities and roles, sexual orientation, eroticism, pleasure, intimacy and reproduction. Sexuality is experienced in thoughts, fantasies, desires, beliefs, attitude, values, behaviors, practices, roles and relationships’’ (Wairimu & Wanjiku, 2005, p.6). This definition makes it clear that sexuality includes physical, emotional and social aspects of human living. Sexual violence which simply means violence against a person’s sexuality can be in form of rape, sexual harassment and sex for favor. These various dimensions of sexual violence shall be discussed below: RAPE Rape is a criminal offence. Section 357 of Criminal Code Act, Law of federation of Nigeria 1990 CAP77 (cited in WACOL),states what acts a person can carry out and he will be guilty of the offence of rape: Any person who has unlawful carnal knowledge of a woman or a girl, without her consent, or if her consent is obtained by force or by means of threats or intimidation of any kind, or by fear of harm, or by means of false and fraudulent representation as to the nature of the act, or in the case of married woman, by personating her husband, is guilty of an offence which is called rape [WACOL,2002,p.1]. It can be noted here that any person who through tricks, threat or force engages in a sexual intercourse with a girl or a woman, raped the victim. Therefore, rape has to do with sex obtained not exclusively through force as is commonly believed but through either force or other means. SEXUAL HARASSMENT This is another aspect of sexual violence. According to WACOL (2008), sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and any verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitutes harassment when any of the following occurs: a. Submission to such conduct is openly made or threatened to be made a term or condition of an individual’s employment or participation in any academic or sponsored program. b. Submission to or refusal of such conduct by an individual is used or threatened to be used as the foundation for academic, employment or program decisions affecting that individual. c. Such conduct has the influence of meddling with an individual’s state of mind, academic or professional performance or creating a threatening, unfriendly, uncomfortable or offensive learning, employment, or living environment”. WACOL also gave examples of sexual harassment as: a) Unsolicited or unwelcome flirtations, advances, and / or propositions of sexual nature; b) Insults, jokes, or anecdotes that belittle or demean an individual or a group’s sexuality or genders; c) Unwelcome sexually-oriented gestures, verbal expressions, comments of a sexual nature about an individual’s body, clothing, or sexual experience; d) Inappropriate display of sexually suggestive objects or pictures; e) Unnecessary and inappropriate touching, such as patting, pinching, hugging or brushing against an individual’s body. Sexual harassment is classified as sexual violence because the expression (verbal or physical) that embodies it is offensive to the person it is directed to. Perpetually, the disgusting feeling it raises is psychologically hurtful and certainly has other negative effects on the victim. SEX FOR FAVOUR This means setting of sex as a condition for doing favor to somebody. Though there is no physical pressure applied to make the victim yield for sex, but psychological pressure is obviously involved, occasioned by the need or desire of the victim to get the favor sought. Since sex is the condition to be met for the favor, consent of the victim is therefore not prompted by inclination or a sense of mutual pleasure. This is what qualifies sex for favor as sexual violence. United Nations High Commission for Refuges noted some situations in which sex for favor can take place: “Pirates may capture women as they travel by boat and extort sex in exchange for their safety and onward passage. Smugglers may assist female refugees across the border in exchange for sex and/ or money and valuables… in a variety of asylum situations, officials who determine the refugee status of the applicant may exhort sex in exchange for a positive determination. Refugee women and girls may be approached for sexual favors. Women in particular may be susceptible to sexual extortion in exchange for material assistance or for identification cards or other forms of documentation required by government officials”. (UNHCR,1995, pp.3-4). Sex for favor is arguably common in educational institutions and work places. Issues of sex for grades or marks, for jobs or promotions are usually reported or discussed in these places. In some banks in Nigeria, it is alleged that a condition given to female job seekers is that they would be ready to offer their bodies to bank customers as a plan for retaining them and that female bankers are also forced into whoredom for their bosses and banks’ customers. CAUSES OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE Some factors dispose people to either being victims or perpetrators of sexual violence. Some of the factors shall be discussed below: Though feminists argue that woman and girls have the right to dress any how they like, yet, that provocative dressing can provoke sexual urge in men or boys and this could result in rape. Sexual fantasy caused by half nudity which is now fashionable among some female youths and women in our society does not all the time immediately result in raping the female concerned, but it may gradually engulf the thought process of emotionally weak boys and men and fill irrepressible desire for sex in them, as a result of which they can go for any female at their reach, whether adult or minor, to satiate the burning urge. Alcohol and drug abuse twists reasoning and can lead the abuser (male or female) into cruel behaviors. Usually, strong sexual drive is motivated by alcohol and hard drug abuse and due to the inability of the abuser to co-ordinate his or her thoughts, rationality can be thrown to the wind in the way and manner of seeking the sexual satisfaction needed. Child labor which takes children away from the watchful eyes of their parents and brings them in contact with strangers, can expose and make them victims of sexual violence. WACOL (2002] notes; As a result of the poor economic situation in our society, most parents send out their under aged children to hawk wares and this category of children are defenseless and they in most cases are sexually abused by their so-called customers. Also, children who work as domestic helps are exposed; they are in most cases abused by the male members of the family they work for[pp.6-7] Erosion of social sanctions, norms for proper behavior and cultural values by civilization and influence of western media content has resulted in moral corruption in our society and this is responsible for sexual violence. In the good old days when traditional societal support mechanisms were in force, sexual violence was unheard of and if it ever happened, the perpetrator faced serious punishments. Cultural practices can as well be instrumental to sexual violence. Cultures of many societies are patriarchal and therefore establish superiority of men to women. This gives the impression that it is appropriate for men to have their way over women and this could lead to the notion that whenever a man develops sexual urge, whether or not a woman is willing, she would have to submit. In a cultural context like this, refusal of a woman to consent to a man’s sexual advances could result in sexual violence against her. Some traditional practices clearly promote sexual violence as they do not give any room for women to object to sexual intercourse. Ajani cultural practice in a town called Nawgu in Anambra state is a typical example. There, a widow is expected to sleep with a deity priest before the burial of her dead husband, on the idea that doing that would make the spirit of her deceased husband rest in peace. No reasonable bereaved woman would be in the mood to enjoy sex, especially before her dead husband is buried. Moreover, she has no right to choose whom to make the love with. She is definitely coerced into doing it. A similar thing happens in some parts of Benue state where men offer their wives as kola to their respected visitors. CONSEQUENCES OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE Sexual violence obviously has negative consequences for its victims. The consequences can be physical, psychological and social. Force of penetration in the case of rape or coerced sexual intercourse can cause harm to the victim. Since there might not be sexual arousal in the female victim, she will likely not develop pleasurable sensation that could lead her vaginal walls to produce lubrication that would enable painless penetration, and also, the perpetrator would obviously not be relaxed and gentle and so the victim might have bruises. Other physical consequences may include contracting HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases, and abortion. Victims may experience psychological trauma, loss of self-esteem, emotional pain and self-pity. They may also experience deep depression that could lead to mental and personality disorders and suicide. Victims of sexual violence may suffer socially by way of stigmatization by friends, relatives and associates. They may even be rejected or disowned by spouse or family members. Unfriendly attitudes to them can lead to loss of self-worth, forced or withdrawal from school or job. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY This study adopted content analysis as the research design. Content analysis is a research technique used to make replicable and valid inferences by interpreting and coding textual material. In content analysis, therefore, a researcher interprets and analyzes text-based materials more clearly and meaningfully to make it easily understood. Hence, it is seen as a form of library research. THE POPULATION OF STUDY The population of this study comprised all issues of Punch and Guardian newspapers published from 1st January, 2015 to 31st December, 2016. The population, according to Wimmer and Dominick (2000, p.81), is a group or class or sub-set, variables, concepts or phenomena. By this definition, the population must not necessarily refer to human beings. Newspapers such as Punch and Guardian can also form the population of a study. SAMPLE SIZE Sample for the study is a part or a fraction or a subset of the population for the study (Nmamani, 2004:21). Using the Taro Yamane method of selecting sample size with a population of 1,400 newspapers in all that is, 700 newspapers for Punch and Guardian each. The sample size that was gotten was 400 newspapers that is, 200 newspapers for Punch and Guardian each. DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS Table 1: Issues of Violence against Women Reported in Guardian Newspaper. Category Years and number of report - Violence/discrimination 22 35 Percentage 11% 17.5% In the year 2015, Guardian Newspaper reported 22 times (11%) on violence against women while in 2016, they reported 35 times (17.5%) on violence against women. Table 2: Issues of Violence against Women Reported in Punch Newspaper Category Years and number of report - Violence/discrimination 30 42 Percentage 15% 21% In the year 2015, Punch Newspaper reported 30 times (15%) on violence against women while in 2016, they reported 42 times (21%) on violence against women. DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS The study shows that Nigerian newspapers as represented by the two national dailies studied, do not attach importance to sexual violence. Similarly, Nigerian newspapers in view of the findings from the samples, do not frequently report sexual violence issues. This can be seen in the fact that out of 200 times, Guardian only reported on violence against women 22 (11%) times in 2015 and Punch reported only 30 (15%) times. Same goes for the year 2016, where Guardian newspaper reported on violence against women only 35 (17.5%) times while Punch reported only 42 times (21%). CONCLUSION From the findings above, it could then be said that it is either that Nigerian newspaper journalists do not consider reporting sexual violence important or that editors in their gate keeping function fail to reasonably publish sexual violence stories gathered. Perhaps this is why incidents of violence have continued to occur because the mass media have not devoted enough attention to the issue in their agenda to make it an issue of concern to the public in keeping with the agenda – setting function of the media. RECOMMENDATION 1. In the first place, reporters should devote more time to investigative reporting so that they can uncover occurrences of discrimination and violence against women and the girl child and bring them to public knowledge. 2. Media reportage of incidents of violence against women can also improve if victims are encouraged to speak out and expose the perpetrators of violence against them. Cases of violence, especially domestic violence should not be treated as family matters, but reported to law enforcement agencies and elaborately covered by the media to dissuade other violators of women’s rights. 3. The frequency of coverage of issues of violence against women which by extension would give the issues the exposure that is equal to their occurrences can be increased if media organizations, most especially newspapers send their correspondents to major towns, cities and villages, rather than depending on reports from state capitals and head offices of the media organizations. REFERENCES Awake (2000). Help for Battered Women. November 8, 2000. Awake, (2003). Violence against women. June 2003. Nkwocha, J. (2000). Bruised and battered Nigeria women: The struggle since Independence. Newswatch. Oct. 2 p. 26. Nnamani, W. (2004). The research process. Enugu: Owulu Publishing Company. Ogbuoshi, L.I. (2005). Issues in Nigeria mass media history. Enugu: Linco Enterprises. 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