THE role of parents has always been very special as to their duty to their offspring: nurturing from the cradle, with all the care and tender love, with the gradual instilling of discipline and moral values that are supposed to be the foundation for becoming proper men and women, hence proper citizens, ready to take their rightful places in society. Of course; this is the ideal, which experience has eluded many young, for circumstances that are only too well known.Traditionally, along this journey to physical and mental maturity, the well-known bonds are formed, with mothers said to be closer to the girl child, while fathers are to the boy child. This is accepted as natural, because as in the case of mother and daughter, for example, there is the common denominator of womanhood, with its uniquely shared peculiar dynamics and experiences.
Of course, the ideal mother is always caring, concerned and protective of her children, whether son or daughter. This is so because of the maternal instinct. But the bond between herself and daughter is very special, as briefly alluded to above.
But, as is so common these days, this time-honoured fact has been changing, as exemplified in a particular social horror called sexual abuse – a component of the wider, brutal scourge of domestic violence. This is in addition to other very disturbing instances.
An extremely cruel fact of the numerous instances of sexual abuse, is the common complaint from the young female victim daughters, of their mothers, often ignoring their cries of sexual violence perpetrated by their fathers/step-fathers, often labelling them as liars and disrespectful, with physical violence being used to enforce silence.
This editorial stands to be corrected, that although there are existing laws, that allow for charges to be brought also against the mother, for aiding and abetting, this is not being done. This will be in cases where charges would have been laid against the father/step-father, with this fact even clearly brought out, but seemingly ignored by the investigating authorities.
That this particular act, more than most, is an abject betrayal of what motherhood is all about, for it speaks of the abandonment of that very special instinct to care. Too many mothers; are known to surrender their female offspring to a category of men, the “sugar daddies”, for the sole reason that the latter either offers to take care of the needs of the particular young girl, or dangle wads of dollars as an enticement. Many of these cases are characterised by the living hell of daily brutality, with certain death being the end result.
Observing mothers physically and verbally abusing very young children of almost infancy, and somewhat older, is as common as it is reprehensible. And this is not to forget, also, the familiar sight of these children being dragged along some uneven surfaces within the roadway, almost stumbling, and accompanied by harsh language. Many mothers these days; do not even care to adjust their arm length downward, to that of their young, while walking.
Not to forget also, is the fact of young children not adequately clad, when outdoors, especially on a rainy day.
Though these examples are not applicable to all mothers, they are illustrative of a type that has emerged within recent decades. It is this editorial’s view that they have a tragically distorted view and understanding of motherhood and its importance to nurturing the growth and development of the child. Many of the latter are mentally scarred by the time of their teen years, with disastrous consequences for their adulthood.
Surely, such desecration is a permanent feature in our country, and adds to an already sorrowful scorecard as far as abuse is concerned.
This cannot be motherhood, as should be; for it generally has sunk to abysmally and shockingly low levels. It needs to be urgently rescued.