UN rapporteur hails RI's bill on domestic violence

A. Junaidi, Jakarta

The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Yakin Erturk, praised on Friday efforts by non-governmental organizations (NGOs) here to promote a bill on domestic violence.

"I hope the bill will be endorsed soon. I congratulate Indonesian women that they are going to have this bill," Erturk, a professor of sociology at the Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Turkey, said in an interview with The Jakarta Post on Friday.

She also lauded Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda for signing the ASEAN declaration on violence against women in Jakarta earlier this month.

She said the signing of the declaration sent a message that the Indonesian government was very much committed to eliminating violence against women.

"I also hope that the media and journalists can also place stress on the issue," she said.

President Megawati Soekarnoputri has approved the forwarding of the bill, which was prepared by NGOs concerned with women's issues over a period of two years, for deliberation in the House of Representatives (DPR).

The National Commission on Violence Against Women had earlier reported persistent increases in the number of cases of violence against women over the last three years. From 3,169 cases reported in 2001, the figure rose to 5,163 in 2002 and 5,934 in 2003.

Of the cases reported last year, only 162 went to court, while the others were withdrawn by the victims or dropped due to lack of evidence.

Erturk said domestic violence happened everywhere, both in developed and developing countries, but there was a major difference as regards the existence of laws to protect women.

"In less developed countries, they lack laws that protect women from violence," she said.

She said that domestic violence in developing countries was related to values, customs and religions that considered women as the property of men, families or the state.

She said some politicians considered domestic violence to be a private matter -- something that should not be criminalized.

Erturk suggested "cultural negotiation" among communities to disseminate the values of universal human rights, particularly a woman's right to bodily integrity.

She said that values, customs and religious teachings, including those of Islam, were often based on interpretations that were detrimental to women.

"This is where the importance of cultural negotiation and dialog lies. By implementing universal human rights and women's rights, it doesn't mean that we lose our values, customs or religion," she said.