CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background to the Study The concern of this study has risen out of the backdrop of incessant conflicts in marriage and home in Agulu community or Aniocha Local Government Area of Anambra state. Family as an institution always experience one form of conflict or the other. In almost every family today, there is also one form of conflict or the other. These conflicts emanates from different sources and may include poverty, sexual incompatibility between couples, infertility, infidelity, unnecessary interference by in-laws, opposing religious interests, procreation of only female children in the family and so on. Records of registration of cases in most social welfare offices of local Government Areas in Anambra State contain applications and requests for separation or divorce of marriages by either of the couples or both, because of their inability to resolve conflicts arising from different sources. Some of the local government areas are – Anaocha Local Government, Awka North Local Government, Onitsha North Local Government, Aguata Local Government, to mention a few. Some children have sent their parents to their untimely death by the use of dangerous weapon because of slight disagreement. The situation is not peculiar to Anambra state. For example, the Shepherd Newspaper (2003), reports how an old woman from Ibagwa-Aka in Igboeze South Local Government Area in Enugu State was “butchered to death†by her first-son, and also a case of a wife who slaughtered her husband with a knife. Scott, (2018) maintained that with most conflict, it is important to find a resolution. This seems like a statement of the obvious, but many people suppress their anger or just „go along to get along‟. They think that by addressing a conflict, they are creating one, and simply keep quiet when upset. Unfortunately, this is not a healthy long term strategy. For one thing, unresolved conflict can lead to resentment and additional unresolved conflict in the relationships. Even more important, ongoing conflict can actually have a negative impact on one’s health and longevity. Akujobi (2016) states that woman bears the brunt of conflict in which she rarely plays a part. Examples abound in Liberia, Sierra-Leone, Sudan, where some peace keepers took advantage of the woman’s helplessness to abuse, debase and rape the woman before the so-called “ration†was given to her. There is also the case of women being executed in Afghanistan for the simple reason that they are not “conformingâ€ÂÂ, there are also cases in Northern Nigeria where women are kept in bondage all in the name of “beliefsâ€ÂÂ. Women are also victims of violence within their own homes, families, communities and even in their countries, because when conflict break, tension mounts, living conditions deteriorates and women are particularly vulnerable. The principle of respect for the life, dignity, and the physical integrity of the individual which is embedded in the humanitarian laws and actually is in favour of women must always be adhered to in times of conflict. If women have to bear so much of the tragic effects of conflict in the family, they must be aware of an impending conflict. Efforts must be made to enlighten the woman about issues in question so that she can be fully equipped to handle whatever may come out of the conflict, perhaps resolve it before it degenerate. One of the ways to equip the women is to take the matter to the extended family to handle There is a case reported at social welfare office from Agulu Anaocha Local Government, Agulu, Anambra State (welfare office Records, 2007) on how a pregnant woman from Agulu was seriously beaten by her husband and she narrowly escaped death, though she lost the foetus. Another case was lodged in 2008 with same office on how a father of four in Agulu abandoned his children and denied them of their right to education, because of a disagreement between him and his wife. A lot of family conflicts were reported from almost all the ten communities in Anaocha local government to the welfare office, ranging from abandonment, neglect, serious beating, and separation to divorce. The existence of most of these destructive, threatening and serious problems in the family impacts negatively on its stability and cohesion. Unfortunately, adequate and proper attention were not given to these family conflicts due to the town’s prevailing constitution that forbids them from reporting family conflicts to the government through social welfare office. As a result, most families have been separated, some divorced and others are living in fear. Hence, due to this incidence of conflict and its debilitating effects on the family and Agulu community at large, the demands for family to meditate on conflict between husbands and wives becomes a necessity and urgent attention. This study is as a result of the rising incidence of conflicts in our Social life as well as their debilitating effects on the family as manifested in rampant cases of marriage separation, divorce and other related vices. Any meaningful attempt to positively address these social vices should really begin with the family as a variable.