Openness key to reducing violence<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Openness in a family relationship and public
\nawareness toward spousal abuse are two remaining key elements
\nwhich must be underscored if the number of domestic violence
\ncases is to decline.<\/p>\n
Human rights activist Marzuki Darusman and sociologist Melly
\nG. Tan told The Jakarta Post an amicable open relationship and
\npublic cooperation would encourage more women to seek legal
\nadvocacy against abuse.<\/p>\n
Both were responding to the sharp increase in the number of
\nreported cases of violence against women, including rape and
\nmarital rape last year.<\/p>\n
Marzuki urged parents to promote a more open and democratic
\nrelationship with their children without forgetting respect for
\ntheir elders, adding that such values could teach children,
\nparticularly boys, to respect their partners in the future.<\/p>\n
\"A mature family maintains a parent-child relationship that is
\nfree from an authoritarian principle,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Marzuki also called for public action from public elements
\nsuch as journalists, the neighborhood and activists to
\ncontinuously disseminate information on women's rights and the
\nlegal avenues available to them.<\/p>\n
He said public support for such rights could motivate women to
\nreport mistreatment against them.<\/p>\n
The Indonesian Women's Association for Justice (APIK) said in
\ntheir year-end report that it handled 227 legal cases regarding
\nwomen, a significant increase from 111 cases in 1996.<\/p>\n
One hundred and fifty-five of the reported cases involved
\nfamily disputes, eight cases of sexual harassment and 11 cases of
\nabuse of domestic workers.<\/p>\n
Divorce accounted for 101 of the 155 family disputes, which
\nalso involved wife beating and marital rape.<\/p>\n
Another report from Kalyanamitra, an organization for the
\nprotection of women's rights, showed that the number of reported
\nrapes reached 250 last year.<\/p>\n
Almost 15 percent of the cases were committed by the victim's
\nfather, uncle, brother or son.<\/p>\n
Many incidents of domestic violence failed to reach court as
\nmany women still consider it taboo to report such issues or take
\n\"private\" matters to court.<\/p>\n
A report from the Mitra Perempuan women's crisis center
\nconcluded that the failure to report incidents had resulted in an
\nincrease in domestic violence.<\/p>\n
The center handled 63 reports on violence against women last
\nyear, 52 of which were classified as domestic violence.<\/p>\n
Sociologist Melly G. Tan of the National Institute of
\nSciences, said women were reluctant to report abuse as they were
\nafraid of public slurs that they were incapable of maintaining a
\nharmonious family, which is often considered a woman's
\nresponsibility.<\/p>\n
\"Such a responsibility should be up to the husbands and
\nwives,\" she said, adding that shared responsibility must be
\ntaught to children from an earlier age.<\/p>\n
Men in our society have little appreciation of sharing the
\nburden and responsibility of maintaining harmony because they
\nwere not taught this when they were young, Melly said.<\/p>\n
\"Boys are brought up thinking that they should be served,\" she
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"Take Idul Fitri for example. It is the girls who must help
\nout with household chores while the boys don't. Boys are never
\ntold to sweep the house,\" she said. (09)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/openness-key-to-reducing-violence-1447893297",
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