Uncovering the Hidden Realities of Incest Relations, Case Study of Punjab, Pakistan

Abstract

Since its inception, incest has been surrounded by mystery, debate, and legal restrictions (Ward, 2017). Sexual relations or marriage between individuals who are closely connected to one another by blood or by marriage is the most prevalent definition of this term. Incest is a culturally created phenomenon, which means that what defines incestuous behavior differs throughout nations and civilizations. This is because anthropologists believe that incest is a culturally produced phenomenon. Marriages between first cousins are not allowed in all cultures; nonetheless, some of these communities do not forbid such unions. Kinship systems, which often assist to maintain incest taboos (Fox, 2015), govern the acceptable social and sexual interactions that individuals are able to have within a given society. These taboos can include incestuous relationships between family members. Estimates of the prevalence of incest in Pakistan are highly variable due to the fact that these differences are mostly influenced by the definition of incest that is utilized as well as the technique of data collection. However, recent research suggests that the incidence of incest in Pakistan may be significantly higher than was previously thought. According to the findings of a study that was carried out by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP), incest was implicated in 69% of sexual abuse occurrences that were reported in 2018. The pursuit of incestuous connections and the societal acceptance of such partnerships were both subjected to the scrutiny of this research, which looked at the influence of culture and patriarchal society. This research also contributes to a better understanding of the mental and physical health impacts that incest has on the individuals who are affected by it. In addition, the victims' perceptions on patriarchal society and their thoughts on the appropriate legal penalty for their abusers are investigated in this study. The method of purposeful sampling was utilized in both stages of the inquiry that were carried out by the researcher. This was because a sample frame had already been formed, and the researcher wanted to get the best possible response rate from the participants. As a result, this result occurred. According to the study, families that strictly adhered to their cultural and traditional norms had a lower likelihood of disclosing any cases of incestuous rape that may have occurred within the family. Following an examination of the information that had been gathered, this result was arrived 3 at. As a result of their investigation, the researcher arrived at this verdict as a result of their study. On the other hand, victims who came from respected families in the community did not think it was right to share the painful events they went through as children with their relatives, particularly their parents. This was especially the case when the victims' parents were still alive. This was especially true for individuals who had been subjected to sexual abuse while they were children. Over the course of all of these years, they had managed to keep their secrets to themselves, not disclosing any of them to anybody else other than a single other person. The only thing that distinguished one victim's story from another was the degree to which the victim's mother was involved in the family's problems or how little involvement she had. This was the one strange quality that stuck out from the rest. This was the one odd quality that struck me the most. in particular, the lack of close contact with the progeny. It came as a shock to learn that mothers who lived in the same house and, in some cases, the same room were oblivious to the traumatic experience their child had gone through or the event that had taken place.