Poor definition allows violations against women

Poor definition allows violations against women

JAKARTA (JP): Violations against women will continue until
campaigners abandon their patriarchal interpretations of human
rights which disregard women's rights.

Rights activists said at a seminar yesterday the lack of a
clear definition of human rights created loopholes for "the
patriarchs" to implement concepts which benefit their own
interests.

Organized by the legal aid institute of the Association of
Indonesian Women for Justice (APIK) and the Institute for Policy
Research and Advocacy (ELSAM), the one-day seminar featured legal
experts Nursyahbani Katjasungkana and Abdul Hakim Garuda
Nusantara, and activists Ita Nadia, Galuh Wandita and Mansour
Fakih.

Since 1945 there have been more than 20 international laws on
the status of women. These international covenants, the speakers
agreed, failed to address the root of the problem, namely gender
inequality.

Gender-based violence against women includes sexual abuse,
domestic violence, genital mutilation, enforced sterilization and
sexual and emotional harassment.

"Misconstrued, incomplete perceptions of feminism perpetuates
gender-based violence," Ita Nadia from Kalyanamitra said, adding
that people generally got caught up in the defensive rhetoric and
discourse of feminism rather than trying to understand it.

The activists agreed the government has not shown enough
political will to increase its protection of women's rights or
eliminate discrimination against women. The situation has
persisted despite the country's 1984 ratification of the
Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination
Against Woman (CEDAW). CEDAW was established in 1979.

Ratification of conventions, according to Abdul Hakim Garuda
Nusantara of ELSAM, shows a country's willingness to divide its
authority with the international community. It demonstrates a
willingness to be dragged to the international tribunal if caught
violating the convention.

By ratifying international conventions, a country's
credibility is put at stake. "It should, therefore, seek to
comply with the convention or face international scrutiny, a
consequence no country can escape," he added.

Ita said the media had failed to address substantial issues in
women's rights, such as abuse. "Media coverage tends to brush
only the tip of the iceberg..certain situations such as abuse
have been neglected under patriarchal values," Ita said.

Nursyahbani Katjasungkana explored the implementation of
international ordinances. She said these laws have failed to
protect women from injustice.

Domestic violence, most of which is unreported, ranked first
in women's rights violations. To make things worse, the existing
legal mechanism failed to safeguard women from oppression and has
in fact silenced women.

Cultural relativism is used to maintained the status quo.
Women's rights rank below civil and political rights, she said.

According to Ita, the state's violence against women is
evident in the deeply entrenched views of women's role as wife
and mother.

Galuh Wandita said violence against women was not a social
pathology but a by-product of the "systemic violence" which
tolerated disguised injustices against women.

The state indirectly supports violence against women by
tolerating violations and neglecting punitive action against
violators.

Sterilization has been forced on women for the sake of curbing
population growth, Galuh charged.

Indonesia's relatively high maternal mortality rate compared
to other Southeast Asian countries, according to Galuh, was a
clear indication of the problem because many deaths could have
been prevented.

"It is not just a matter of poverty," she added.

The 1996 United Nations Development Program report cited
Indonesia's maternal mortality rate to be 650 deaths in a 100,000
live births.

Many international conventions need to be evaluated and
improved so they effectively protect women's rights, the seminar
concluded. (06)