[Unpad.ac.id, 28/06/2013] In commemorating The United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture on June 26, 2013, Centre for Research Development in Gender and Children/ Centre for Woman Studies of Universitas Padjadjaran in cooperation with Kelab Wanita Universiti Malaysia Terangganu (UMT-Mutiara) organized a talk show on the theme of Domestic Violence Elimination Act.
The event which took place on June 26, 2013 at the Multipurpose Room of LPPM Unpad, Jl. Banda, Bandung presented keynote speakers from the two countries, namely Prof. Madya Dr. Nora Aini Hj. Ali, Puan Wan Wan Sarimah Razak, Dr. Nina Djustiana, drg., Kes., and moderated by Yustikasari, S.Sos., M.Ikom.
At the event, P3GA LPPM Unpad and Kelab Wanita UMT shared the experiences of the two countries in their efforts to stop various forms of domestic violence so far. It was revealed that in Indonesia, laws and regulations of domestic violence do not necessarily provide protection guarantee for the victims yet, especially for women and children victims.
At the discussion, it was revealed that best way yet to afford the victims protection is to stay away, if not to get out of the circle of domestic violence perpetrators, which can be done through divorce. However, there is still some reluctance on the part of women victims of domestic violence to get out of the circle because of various reasons, one of which is economic dependence. This situation makes it more difficult to break the chain of violence against women.
Many women victims of domestic violence fear to report to the officials, let alone to bring the perpetrators, who are their husbands, to court because doing so will impose legal sanctions on them. Therefore, it is suggested that conventional sanctions of Domestic Violence Law should be redesigned to be more educational and rehabilitative, for instance, by giving the perpetrators education on gender equality and justice and by involving them in domestic-task-related community services, such as social works at the daycare.
According to the representatives of Kelab Wanita UMT, they fear that domestic violence issues in Malaysia are currently being left unexplored because the impact of domestic violence there has been very chronic. This is the major concern in Malaysia. The number of single-parent women due to divorce is very high. The problem is not the divorce itself, but the lives of these women post-divorce are far from prosperous. Therefore, economic empowerment is the effort which is now being promoted by women rights activists in Malaysia.
This event is expected to be the threshold of cooperation between P3GA LPPM Unpad and Kelab Wanita UMT in women’s empowerment. The empowerment is not only to liberate women from the shackles of violence, but also to promote sustainable development of women’s welfare.
P3GA LPPM Unpad and Kelab Wanita UMT are to plan a collaborative research and seminar on single mother’s empowerment. Through the cooperation, both parties are expected to share each other’s knowledge and make a contribution in implementing each country’s women-related policies, so that it would bring a considerable impact on single mother’s welfare. *
