A critical perspective on the legal, cultural and social dimensions of violence against women

On November 29, 2023 in Rome Rita El Khayat was awarded as part of the International Award "Standout Woman Award", for her commitment to promoting women’s emancipation and gender equality at an international, national and regional level. On December 14 we have an honor to meet and talk to Rita El Khayat about feminism today.

Born in Morocco, Rita El Khayat is a fervent activist for women's rights, a psychiatrist, anthropologist and a writer, an author of scientific and literary books, dedicated to women's issues, including “Cultural diversity and interbreeding,” “Traditional violence against women,” “Les filles de Shéhérazade: Essai sur les femmes arabes,” or “The book of Arabic and Muslim first names...” to name a few. She was a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2008.

Presentation abstract: 

Standing at no.5 (Gender Equality) amongst the 17 SDGs, it is obvious that even in the present millennium, domestic violence and abuse is rampant across the length and breadth of the globe, disrupting equality. Diversity, Equality and Equity are the buzzwords of the 21st century, yet global data available from UNDP states that 35% of the global population of women have experienced violence. India’s experience of gender specific violence is embedded within its culture, though, practiced in many very subtle and sometimes very open, brutal ways. Considered to be a natural expression of dissatisfaction of all sorts, the act of domestic violence against women by women and men within the purview of family is considered natural.

In Indian Culture we worship goddesses, men and women alike, however, those very same hands are the actors of violence and abuse against wives, daughters, mothers. This presentation is to look at gender specific violence and abuse in a domestic peaceful environment with special reference to the subcontinent of India. My critique will use the framework of Geert Hofstede’s dimensions of culture to correlate the prevalent beliefs, practices, traditions around perpetrators and victims of violence and abuse. 

Bio: 

With specialization in English Renaissance Literature, English Language Teaching and Diversity Management, Prof. Basavadatta Mitra has a keen interest in understanding the various applications of Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Framework across In/Tangble artefacts of Human Civilization. She has been guiding multiple, interdisciplinary, undergraduate and doctoral theses whose focus has been on tangible and intangible cultural artifacts. Recently she has received a prestigious grant  from Ministry of Education, Government of India to conduct a project in collaboration with Nanyang Technology University (NTU) in Singapore.