COMBATING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN: HINDSIGHT FROM A DECADE OF NEWS REPORTS ON FAMILY VIOLENCE IN HONG KONG

Abstract

This paper is based on a research project entitled A Documentation of Newspaper Reports on Family Violence in Hong Kong in the Past Decade carried out between 1992 and 1994. Based on a content analysis of news coverage of domestic violence in a local Chinese newspaper between 1 January 1981 and 31 December 1990, the author identified a number of findings in this study. First, it was found that 80% (N=91) of the victims of spousal abuse were women. Second, news coverage on violence against women in conjugal relationships were skewed with reports of violence that are of a physical nature (94%). Third, the reports represented only the most serious cases and, therefore represents only the tip of the iceberg insofar as violence against women is concerned. This is because: (i) a large number of these cases involved the use of deadly weapons such as choppers and knives. (ii) all the cases required police intervention; and (iii) 93% of non-fatal cases required immediate medical attention. Lastly, the present study found that the discourse on tended to view violence against women in the newspaper under study to view it as a private, rather than public, issue. On the basis of these findings, the paper discusses the implications for social work practice. 本文乃是根据香港理工大学应用社会科学学系于1992至1994年间所进行一项题为《过去十年香港报章对家庭暴力案件之报导》的研究结果而写成。是项研究的结果可归纳为四点。第一，八成以上的婚姻暴力受害人为女性。第二，94%的报导案件为身体暴力性质。第三，绝大部份的报导案件都涉及危险武器之使用，因此所有的个案都有警方的介入，当中93%的非致命案件的受害人需要即时送院医理。由此看来，所报导的虐妻案件明显地只是代表了香港最严重的虐妻个案。最后，此研究亦发现该传媒主要是把虐妻看为一个个人的问题而非一个社会问题。根据以上的发现，本文作了相关的讨论和建议。