Structure

What is Gender Based Violence

International standards

Loopholes in Sri Lankan Law to Address the victims of Gender Based Violence

Need for a Legal Regime to

Address the Issues Relating to Victims of Gender Based Violence

Recommendations

Objective of the Research • The main objective of this research is to introduce a gendered perspective towards victim protection, so that any new law would be effective to address the existing issues and failures to protect victims of gender based violence.

• The research attempts to identify the various instances of gender based violence especially, in order bring in the gendered perspective to the law.

Research Methodology Legal

Research Methodology

Use of primary and secondary sources of

law

Qualitative data

gathering and analysis

What is Gender Based Violence ?

What is Gender Based Violence ?

• The first official definition of GBV was offered in 1993- UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women

• Article 1 : any act of GBV that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivations of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.

• Article 2- the definition should encompass, but not limited to acts of physical, sexual and psychological violence in the family, community or perpetrated or condoned by the State, wherever it occurs. These acts includespousal battering sexual abuse – including of female children dowry related violencerape including marital rape female genital mutilation/ cutting and other traditional practices harmful to womennon-spousal violencesexual violence related to exploitation sexual harassment and intimidation at worktrafficking in women forced prostitution and arbitrary deprivation of liberty whether occurring in public or private life.

What is Gender Based Violence ?

• The 1995 Beijing Platform for Action expanded on the UN definition specifying that GBV also includes:

Violation of rights of women in situations of armed conflict – systematic rape, sexual slavery and forced pregnancy forced sterilization forced abortion, coerced or forced use of contraceptives Parental sex selection Female infanticide

Who is a Victim?•Assistance to and Protection of Victims of Crime and

Witnesses Act, No. 4 of 2015

Section 46 – Interpretation victim of crime” means a person including a child victim

who has suffered any injury, harm, impairment ordisability whether physical or mental, emotional,economic or other loss, as a result of an act or omissionwhich constitutes an alleged—(a) offence under any law ; or(b) infringement of a fundamental right guaranteedunder Articles 13(1) or (2) of the Constitution, and includes a person who suffers harm as a result of intervening to assist such a person or to prevent the commission of an offence, and the parent or guardian of a child victim of crime and any member of the family and next of kin of such person, dependents and any other person of significant importance to that person ;

Gender Based Violence in Higher Education Institutes in Sri Lanka

• The disparity and discrimination of the right to equality guaranteed by Article 12 of the Constitution of Sri Lanka is not a reality to be seen in most of the higher education institutions.

• While the number of female students are markedly higher than the number of male population (Ex: Law Faculty of the University of Colombo the female to male ratio is a staggering 1:6 ) however the students council memberships are held exclusively by the male students.

• Lack of proper, available and accessible counseling services in the higher education institutions. Lack of proper training for the counselors.

• Use of ragging as a means of exerting control over the junior students despite the existence of the Ragging Act and the policy adopted recently to introduce a leadership training for the new freshers.

International treaties ratified by Sri Lanka – relevant to GBV

• International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICEC of UNGA Resolution 2200A (XXI) of 16th December 1966

• 1980- UDHR of 1948

• 1981 UN Convention on all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW of 1979)

• 1993 UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (DEVAW of UNGA resolution 48/104 of 1993

• CEDAW - legally binding framework for state measures to end discrimination against women in all spheres of life: the political, economic, social, cultural, civil or any other field.

• Convention does not explicitly mention violence against women. The reason for this omission is that in the 1970s, when the text of CEDAW was drafted, GBV, in particular violence committed in the home, was not yet regarded as a human rights issue.

What is Gender Based Violence ?

• CEDAW Committee in 1992 adopted General Recommendation No. 19 on violence against women.

• CEDAW standards for an effective state response to GBV (General Recommendation No. 19):

• Ensure that laws against GBV give adequate protection to all women. Effective legal measures include penal sanctions, civil remedies and compensatory provisions.

• Implement gender-sensitive training of public officials including judges and police.

• Provide women survivors with effective complaint procedures and remedies, including compensation.

• Establish or support appropriate protective and support services for women who have experienced or are at risk of violence, rape, sexual assault and other forms of GBV. This includes an obligation to provide shelters, specially trained health workers, rehabilitation and counseling services, and to ensure that such services are accessible to rural women.

• Undertake preventive measures, including public information and education programmes to overcome attitudes, customs and practices that perpetuate GBV.

• Compile statistics and research on the extent, causes and effects of GBV, and on the effectiveness of measures to prevent and respond to violence.

Other International Instruments that address GBV and Victim Protection

• The Programme of Action adopted at the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo

• Agreed Conclusions of the 57th session of the Commission on the Status of Women-by The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at its 57th session in 2013

• Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention)-7 April 2011, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted the Convention.

Laws and Policies in Sri Lanka aimed at Protecting Victims of GBV

• 1993- Women’s Charter was formulated

• Ministry of Women’s Affairs had initiated an action plan to address the issue of violence through the National Committee on Women

• Sri Lanka Medical Association has established the Women’s Health Committees and the Gender Focal point in Ministry of Health was established by the Family Health Bureau

• Sri Lanka Police has a separate wing to address issues of women and children.

• Prevention of Domestic Violence Act (PDVA) – 2005

PDVA Legal provisions:

• The Act has provided that any person who suffers or is likely to suffer such violence is able to seek protection from a Magistrates Court. The Magistrates court is given the power by the Act to issue Interim Protection Orders summarily, which is valid until the conclusion of the inquiry.

• The power to issue an Interim Order is provided for by Section 5 of the Act. Upon an inquiry of the matter the court is empowered by section 6 to issue Protection Order. The protection orders can be issued even in the absence of the respondent if the court is satisfied, on a consideration of the evidence that it is necessary to issue a Protection Order (section 7).

• The only mechanism provided for the enforcement of the order is a summary trial before the Magistrate resulting in a fine not exceeding ten thousand rupees or imprisonment or both. (section 18). The implementation of the order is hence not ensured or guaranteed.

• The Act has defined emotional abuse as “a pattern of cruel, inhuman and degrading or humiliating conduct of a serious nature directed towards an aggrieved person’

Issues in implementation of PDVA

• The cultural norms of the society• The law fails to make provisions regarding the standards of abuse and on how to measure the emotional abuse. As revealed through a discussion with a medical professional, Sri Lankan law has no provision to address the impacts of post-traumatic stress disorder caused as a result of the domestic violence or abuse. There is no mechanism in Sri Lanka to identify whether a victim is suffering from the post traumatic stress disorder or not. This in turn results in false statistics with reference to the number of victims.

• There is no state regulated service mechanism or support system to assist the survivor.

• Lacuna in accessible, free and available medical, psychological and legal advisory care.

Latest Government Initiative

•Assistance to and Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses Act, No. 4 of 2015

• The long title of the Act sets out that it is to “provide for the setting out of Rights and Entitlements of Victims of Crime and Witnesses and the Protection and Promotion of such Rights and entitlements; to give effect to appropriate international norms, standards and best practices relating to the protection of victims of crime and witnesses; the establishment of the National Authority for the Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses; Victims of Crime and Witnesses Assistance and Protection Division of the Sri Lanka Police Department; Payment of compensation to victims of crime; establishment of the victims of crime and witnesses assistance and protection fund”.

Features of the Act

• Recognition of Rights and entitlements of victims

• Introduction of offences relating to victims and witnesses.

• Establishment of a separate Authority and a fund

Recommendations • Salutary features in the laws needs to be

complimented by effective policies:

-policies relating to free and accessible medical and psychological care-policies to provide free and available legal advice.-a national policy for a care and service centre to house the victims.-educational policies to ensure that the school curricula addresses GBV – awareness for male and female students -professional training programmes for counselors at the primary, secondary and tertiary educational levels.

• The law reforms need to focus on the latest developments in the medical, psychological and health care fields.

Recommendations Cont…. • Assistance and protection of victims is not to be

seen as an isolated act but more as an integral policy of all the related departments and ministries.

Educational

polices

Ministry Women’s Affairs

Education

ministry

Police & legal

community

Health ministry

Legal policies

Ministry Women’s Affairs

Education

ministry

Police & legal

community

Health ministry

Recommendations Cont…• The efforts of the Women's Affairs Ministry and the

Police and other civil society initiatives need to be streamlined to effectively address the root causes and implement the law in a sustainable manner.

Government Ministries Departments

Civil Societ

y

Individuals

Recommendations Cont… • In order to address the issues of the victims of

gender based violence especially in relation to the Higher Education Institutions there needs to be a confidential mechanism available for the students to make their complaints. This mechanism should enable the students to bypass the established hierarchies in the institution.

• Encouragement for the students to report a matter related to them or a matter they are aware of.

• The perception prevalent among the students and the lecturers is that it is a personal matter!

• Practical implementation mechanisms can go a long way in helping another.

Recommendations Cont… • Need to change the culturally embedded stereotypes.

“Sexual, racial, gender violence and other forms of discrimination and violence in a culture cannot be eliminated without changing the culture.”- Charlotte Bunch -

• Empowering women has gone a long way in educating the woman and helping her gain independencehowever the educational policy also needs to address the attitudes and values of the educators and the educated.

• Need to ensure that there is a community based support system for the victims of GBV.

• Media – to be more responsible than making GBV a sizzling issue to tantalize the crowds.

• Overall a holistic change and acceptance of the fact that tradition and culture are not to remain static, but they are dynamic.

Sources International Instruments

• UDHR of 1948 • International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural

Rights (ICEC of UNGA Resolution 2200A (XXI) of 16th December 1966

• 1981 UN Convention on all forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW of 1979)

• 1993 UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women (DEVAW of UNGA resolution 48/104 of 1993

• UN Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women 1993

• The Programme of Action adopted at the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) in Cairo

• Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention)-7 April 2011, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted the Convention

• Agreed Conclusions of the 57th session of the Commission on the Status of Women-by The Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) at its 57th session in 2013

Sources Laws• Assistance to and Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses Act,

No. 4 of 2015• Prevention of Domestic Violence Act No. of 2005

Other Sources • C. Kodikara & T. Piyadasa, Domestic Violence Intervention Services in

Sri Lanka, An Exploratory Mapping, 2009-2011, ICES with Women Defining Peace.

• S. Jayaweera, H. Wijemanne, L. Wanasundera, K.M. Vitarana, Gender Dimensions of the MDGs in Sri Lanka, Centre for Women’s Research, 2007

• Guidelines for Gender-based Violence Interventions in humanitarian settings Focusing on Prevention of and Response to Sexual Violence in Emergencies http://www.gdnonline.org/

• Gender-based Violence Tools Manual, For Assessment & Program Design, Monitoring & Evaluation in conflict-affected settings, http://reliefweb.int/

• Review of Research Evidence on Gender Based Violence in Sri Lanka, 2nd ed, SLMA, 2011

• Strengthening the Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence, A Resource Package, http://www.health-genderviolence.org/

• http://www.seigualdad.gob.es/violenciaGenero/portada/home.htm

Thank you !