Women subjected to rape, abuse

An alarming number of Thai women and their friends have experienced abuse, betrayal and even rape, according to a survey by the Women and Men Progressive Movement Foundation (WMP).

The WMP survey on domestic violence was carried out from Jan 27 to Feb 2 among 1,608 female respondents who were aged between 17 and 40 from various levels of education and occupations in Bangkok and its outskirts.

Regarding violence, the survey showed 42.2% of respondents were forced into sexual acts with their husbands or boyfriends and 41.1% said they were forced to have an abortion while others also experienced physical and mental assault by their partners.

The use of alcohol and illicit drugs contributed to the violence. Other factors include infidelity, jealousy and the use of social media.

In terms of attitude towards love, 76.8% of respondents said women must have a monogamous relationship, 47.9% said men are family leaders, 43.3% said wives or girlfriends must obey and pay attention to their partners.

Just more than 40% of men view wives as their “properties”.

Slightly more than 20% of respondents said men were comfortable with having sex without contraception while 18.2% of women viewed having sex with their husbands or boyfriends as “a duty”.

Asked whether more couples will decide to have sex on Valentine’s Day, most respondents disagreed, saying the couples can express their love for each other on any day.

WMP member Sitthisak Ponthaisong said yesterday violence between couples mainly stemmed from male-dominant attitudes in Thai society, adding many people also viewed their lovers as “personal property”.

In a bid to address the violence issue, these attitudes must be altered, he said.

“People should focus on forging understanding in their relationships,” he said.

Mental Health Department director-general Boonruang Triruangworawat said teen couples can have sex on any occasion regardless of whether it’s a recognised “day of romance”.

According to a survey conducted by the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Rajanagarindra Institute, of 1,250 respondents in secondary school and vocational students in Bangkok, 86% said Valentine’s Day has nothing to do with their decision to have sex.

In the aspect of birth control, 89% used condoms, 75% said using condoms was the best approach to prevent pregnancy, while 1.5% of male students said contraception was not necessary.

Also, 90% of female students told their boyfriends to use condoms as they did not use any other form of contraception.