As Taiwan marked International Woman's Day yesterday, a newly formed association for the opposite sex was urging men to better understand male-female relations to create harmony between the sexes.
"Men must learn to look after and understand themselves so that they will have the capability to further take care of the needs of the women they love," said Lan Huai-an (
"It cannot be overemphasized that men's self-consciousness regarding their own difficulties and relationships plays a key role in the quality of male-female relationships," she said. "The reason why many females suffer in their interactions with men is because of [these types of] obstacles."
While claiming to be the first grassroots group to promote male self-consciousness in Asia, the association urges men to appreciate the softer, or emotional, side of their characters to build up their capacity to seek assistance when in need.
The association, founded last December, currently has 50 male members and 20 female sponsors.
Yang Trung-tsair (楊聰財), a psychiatrist at the Military Pei-tou Hospital (國軍北投醫院) and president of the association, said men who follow the stereotype of being the family breadwinner are hesitant to share their feelings of depression.
Yang said this inability to express frustrations results in insomnia, anxiety, depression and problems with their digestive systems, especially during times of economic depression.
He said untreated emotional problems have caused conflicts in his clients' families.
Lan used the example of the quality of a couple's sex life to illustrate the importance of realizing how society's expectations affect men's roles in male-female relationships. According to a vote on the association's Web site, 47 percent of male voters and 48 percent of female voters said sexual problems had triggered disputes with their partners.
"Men are supposed to always remain macho and heroic, even in bed. Men may know that their female partners seldom have an orgasm -- although women may pretend that they do to avoid hurting their partner's feelings -- but men have to pretend as if they have succeeded in giving pleasure, and [therefore] seldom think about what their partner really wants," she said.
"Women ... as a result, fail to enjoy sex, while men also suffer because of the great pressure [from society and cultural values] to perform well," said Yang.
The association has initiated projects to help men realize that they do not always have to be strong and capable. Lectures and consultations to enhance men's quality of life, incorporating physical and mental health, are to be held for members of the association. These projects include events to improve couples' sex lives.
The association is also collecting articles portraying Shanghai men, since they have a reputation for being especially considerate and gentle.
Yang said men failed to form such associations by themselves because they are less motivated to engage in matters that do not benefit their careers.
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