Menggagas Tempat Aman Bagi Perempuan Kasus DIY

24 Juli 2012 - 11:11:00 | admin

The increase in the scope and intensity of cases involving violence against women (VAW), which have occurred in both the public and domestic sectors, has attracted the attention of academics, activists, and practitioners. Violence does not only take sexual and physical forms, but also nonsexual and non-physical, as well. Similarly, in terms of intensity, cases range from those categorized as of low intensity, such as sexual harassment, to high, involving either rape or murder or both. It is in light of the foregoing that an integrated and cross sector management /handling of cases involving violence against women is deemed imperative.

This research finds out the woeful lack of synergy in the cooperation among institutions that handle the issue of violence against women. Cooperation among litigating institutions, as well as between litigating and non-litigating institutions leaves a lot to be desired. The police, prosecution, and judiciary have not yet harnessed good cooperation and synergy in tackling cases involving violence against women. The same applies to the cooperation between litigating and non-litigating institutions, where there is a yawning gap that still persists in handling cases, which involve violence against women.

The study used survey and in-depth interviews of litigating institutions (legal assistance bodies) in Yogyakarta special administrative region and Kulon Progo, as well as case studies on 10 NGOs located in Yogyakarta special administrative region which keen interest in women affairs. Results indicate that the handling of cases involving the use of violence against women still falls short of expectations of the general public. The existence of a gender bias against women in the law, which assumes that women are not supposed to commit offenses as well as gender bias among the law enforcement bodies, has meant those women who are victims of violence have their faces against the wall as far as taking legal action as way of settling their cases. Even non-litigating institutions, where women who are victims of violence have placed most of their hope, in efforts to resolve their cases have been affected by finance and human resources constraints which has severely limited the scope of many NGO activities.

The attitude shown by members of the public, which tends to blame the victim is a general picture, which is far cry from facts and physical and psychological stress suffered by the woman who is a victim of violence. An analysis of gender sensitivity among opinion leaders shows some interesting findings. The survey conducted on 129 opinion leaders, as well as in-depth interviews of several of them, indicates that the level of sensitivity towards gender equality and justice is neither high not low (average). Opinion leaders who showed high and low gender sensitivity constitute quite a small proportion of the group. Inference from this is the general picture that portrays the absence of high commitment towards gender equality and justice among opinion leaders. This article will explain in depth on how key stakeholders provide or deprive opportunities towards efforts tailored toward handling cases of violence against women along with an exposition of all endeavors that have so far been made by the respective institution in tackling such cases.

Key word: VAW, Litigating Institutions, Cooperation.