QN. There are several factors affecting present status of women in some non western societies. Those factors can be categorized socially, economically and culturally. Explain it in Briefly

QN. There are several factors affecting present status of women in some non western societies. Those factors can be categorized socially, economically and culturally. Explain it in Briefly

INTRODUCTION

Definitions of key terms

Culture is the people’s ways of life or totality ways of life of members of the society. This includes what members of the society dress, marriage, customs, arts, pattern of work, religion and so other many activities performed by a particular society in their daily life.

Status the position of an individual in relation to another or others especially in regard to social or professional standing (www.definestatus at Dictionary.com).

Also status can be defined as the social or legal position, rank, condition or possession considered showing a person’s high position (Ostler G. 1979).

Society refers to the relative large group or collection of people who share more or less common distinctive culture occupied to a certain geographical location (Shankarrao C.N, 2006-Pg103-104)

A non western society refers to those societies found in India, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East.

Women in non western societies are not enjoying equal status in the society even in the families. Although constitution and legal safe guards and several empowerment programs and policies for their development, have improved the status of women, yet they lack power in many fields and hence they are subordinated to men.

In non western societies the inequality between men and women is one of the most and crucial issue which reflect right from the birth of the girl child up to the death of women. That is in non Western societies people feel that, it is better to die a girl child or a woman rather than to die a boy child or a man, this is due to existence of strong desire of for the son child which may some times leads towards big family size and hence the increase of population.

In low income like in non Western societies more than 75 percent of women’s work is un paid activities because much of the non market work they perform remains statistically invisible. As a result women who prefer un paid tasks neither economically rewarded nor socially valued or recognized as productive members of the society.

Tanzania Census of 2002 shows that only 12 percent as a female working force. The reason being that women’s work could never get recorded either in the population census or their contribution to the national income, and the majority of women workers are working in rural areas (Government of Tanzania 2002).

There are several factors affecting present status of women in some non western societies. Those factors can be categorized socially, economically and culturally. The following are cultural factors affecting the present status of women in some non Western societies. These are:-       

Patriarchy system, this is the most common ideology used in shaping social relations in world wide, this expresses the totality of women subordination, discrimination and exploitation. The patriarchy ideology has been institutionalized in family, religion, work place and in political arena. In patrilineal ethnic group, the family including the wife their descent relationship is belongs to the father’s clan. For example in Tanzania families, our late presidents wives, the former presidents wives  and even to the present presidents wives, their names has descended to their husbands clan. The name of Mwl. J.K Nyerere has changed to the clan of her husband, which is now called Mama Maria Nyerere, another is Mama Anna Mkapa and Mama Salma Kikwete. They use such names due to patriarchy system existing within our society (Mukangara F. 2009)

Marginalization of women in decision making, the prevailing customs and attitudes enforce the inferior position and status of women. Women are seen to have no ability to engage in independent thinking or to have original ideas. For these reasons women are marginalized in decision making on the matters of social importances. For example in Mwera societies found in southern part of Tanzania men remain as a decision maker after the sells of cash crops (Muhambo, A.N 2009).

Property ownership, culturally women are treated as minor unable to defend themselves. Culture has been used to justify the oppression of women and denial of the rights, contrary to the constitution, law and several political parties’ platforms. Many women especially widows, have lost their property rights because they are treated as minor unable to defend themselves.

Bride price, the custom of paying bride price dowry can facilitate the problem of mistreatment of women especially when large some of property is paid. The system of bride price is increasingly being commercialized and women are less auctioned or exchange for material goods. They are discouraged from seeking divorce for fear of being unable to refund the bride price. For example in Chaga tribe found in northern part of Tanzania and Sukuma tribe found in central Tanzania by which a white lady is married is a high price of not less than two million or a number of tough cows.

Religion influence, religion is based on what you believe, it is often contributes to women marginalized position in society in terms of indoctrination and maintenance of cultural status quo where women are taught that they are subservient to men in both Bible and Koran. For example in bible (Efeso 5-6 line 22) warn women to respect their husbands as they respect the lord. It is also evident that top leadership position in all religion is monopolized by men (The holy bible in Kiswahili 1997).

Access to education, in education enrolment between boys and girls are at parity at the primary school level and in secondary levels. More boys are enrolled in higher education than girls who result from cultural norms which specify different perspectives for men and women in relation to education (Kassimoto, T.J 2008).

For example Tanzania education data of 2006 up to 2009 shows that girl’s students were less enrolled in education than boys. That is in 2006-2009, 25 percent of boys enrolled in education for form one to form four. While in the same years only 19 percent of girls enrolled in for form one to form four. Also in the same year’s boy’s percentage in education enrolment for form five to form six were 1.8 percentages while girls were 1.07 percentages.

Therefore by looking the above data you can now see that there is no equal enrolment in education between girls and boys, this may contributes to inferior status of women in the societies (thhp:www.ipu.org/wmn-e/classif.htm).

The gender division of labour, this is the tendency of allocating more and heavy workloads to girls which result into poor performance of a girl. Works allocated to girls are heavy, many and more frequent compared to those allocated to boys. In turn these works train girls to become as a machine for domestic works compared to men who spend more time in sports and games. For example in Nyakyusa society of Tanzania girls are trained to become good in domestic works expecting that after getting married they will be competent in domestic works or in careering their families.

Another is that, but also a descent women is suppose to keep quite and pay due respect to men however the young he might be, in other societies a young men of seven years has authority over a woman of forty years. When the young men tell a woman not to do a certain thing the old woman will stop doing it because a man has said or instructed.

Also socialization process, in non western societies a girl child is socialized to do home chores like fetching water, cooking, washing dishes, taking care of children and cleaning environment. While a boy child is socialized to be brave leader and with power through statements like “you are a boy don’t cry like a girl, you are a man you must not admit defeat” therefore, these statements gives a concept that a woman is always not equal to a man, while is not true.

Criticism

Although constitution and legal safeguards and several empowerments programs and policies emphasize the improvement of women statuses, it seems that some women especially of rural areas are not ready for such change, which means that not only cultural factors gives the inferior status of women of some non western societies. To some extent this inferior status is being contributed by women themselves. They still think that to be dominated by their husbands is their right and it is not fair for them to have equal status with their husbands or to men in general. For example some women when they are appointed to hold a certain responsibilities they prefer to say that “I’m a woman I can’t manage such responsibilities”.

Conclusion

The society also have to make an efforts on improving the status of women by encouraging to contest for political positions and make sure they elect them in order to balance the statuses between men and women. By dong so the status gap between men and women will be reduced.