Violence against women at alarming levels: HRCM
The most common form of domestic violence was committed by the spouse
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By
Aminath Shifleen
Human Rights Commission of Maldives (HRCM) has said that the number of reports of various forms of violence against women has increased to an alarming level.
The commission published its annual report on Sunday. In addition to human rights abuses, the report looks at the welfare of children, women and people with disabilities.
One of the biggest concerns in the report is the significant increase in the number of reports of violence against women in the past two years. They include:
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In 2021 and last year, 88% of the cases reported to the gender ministry were cases of violence against women; last year, 336 such cases were reported, compared to 428 the previous year
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77% of cases reported to the Family and Protection Authority (FPA) in the last two years were domestic violence; among them, physical and psychological abuse and intimidation are the most common
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The most common form of domestic violence was committed by the spouse
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From 2019 to August 2022, 1,201 cases of violence against women were reported to the police
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Physical injuries are the most common; cases of fighting and domestic violence
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From 2021 to August 2022, the Prosecutor General's Office (PG) has filed charges in 88 cases of violence against women
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Within the past three years, extremist religious ideology has been used to oppress women; the report noted that adequate efforts have not been made to prevent such practices and to raise awareness about women's rights and the importance of working against violence against women in Islam
According to the report, 37 of the 42 people who have been issued domestic violence protection orders in the past two years are women.
Challenges in resolving issues
The report includes details of the challenges faced by the relevant agencies in taking action against violence against women. They include:
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The FPA noted that the role of relevant agencies in dealing with domestic violence cases is not clear; agencies have not developed a standard procedure for compliance
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To address this issue, minimum standards are being developed for the relevant authorities to follow, the report quoted the FPA as saying
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The prosecutor general's office noted that the act of domestic violence is not defined as a separate criminal offence, which poses challenges in prosecuting cases
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The legal framework does not take into account the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim of the crime; the report quoted the prosecutor general as saying that domestic violence offences are classified on the same level as other offences involving violence
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Victims of crime do not receive adequate protection and support within the system; the lack of restorative justice in domestic violence cases, the lack of a robust referral mechanism and the lack of a financial assistance system to help victims and their families have been cited as challenges in accessing justice
