The most interesting point besides the argument is that according to the author there is a division between morality and politics. It seems that in their opinion that there is too much focus on people being able to live a bare life rather than a life that is happy, and free of inequality and poverty. Instead of just focusing on allowing people with life-threatening diseases/ injuries in the country, the French government must realize that their help is not solving the underlying issues that have caused people to be desperate enough to cause injury to themselves. There needs to be more of an emphasis on fixing the situations in the homelands.
The article itself was relatively easy to understand. However, it is hard to understand how people can be so desperate for a better life that they would harm themselves to obtain it. It is also kind of hard to comprehend why the law still exists. The government of France must realize what people are willing to do because of this piece of legislation, so why not get rid of it.
The Figure of the Abducted Woman: The Citizen as Sexed
The most interesting point besides the argument is that the intention of the government was to help the women overcome the terrible situations that they had just endured. They did this by bringing them back to their families and allowing them to return to their former lives. The government passed laws to help the women, and the children born out of the forced relationships, Nevertheless, the event was not something that was permitted to diminish with time. Instead, both Muslims and Hindus were fighting to gain control over the rights and bodies of women as they have both attached a woman’s honor to that of the country’s. This has caused them to focus on the preservation of the nation’s purity and honor. However, neither side has any consideration for the opinion of the women on the matter.
Learning about this bleak period of history in Pakistan and India helped me to have a better understanding of the patriarchal societies that rule both countries. This is because there has always been the supposition that the gender roles were a part of their religions. I do not understand why many women were so fearful to return home, and wonder what type of lives did women lead before the Partition. However, since both India and Pakistan decided after creating laws intended to help women readjust after being kidnapped and violated that it is acceptable to permit men to rape their own wives as they are not permitted to deny their husbands sex.
Works Cited
Das, Veena. "The Figure of the Abducted Woman: The Citizen As Sexed. Life and Words : Violence and the Descent into the Ordinary. 8-37.
Ticktin, Miriam. Where Ethics and Politics Meet: The Violence of Humanitarianism in France. 2006.
