RIGHTS-JAPAN: Women Seek Legislation Against Domestic Violence

By Suvendrini Kakuchi Reprint | | Print |

Suvendrini Kakuchi

TOKYO, Sep 11 2000 (IPS) - Domestic violence against women is becoming an increasingly serious problem in Japan, says a report compiled by a group of women’s organisations tackling a subject once discussed only within the confines of one’s home.

The report has been forwaded to the Japanese Diet for debate this month by the activist organizations that are calling for new legislation that would make domestic violence “an unforgivable and criminal act”.

“There is not a moment to lose,” said Yoko Hattori, spokeswoman for the Yokohama Women’s Group, a non-government organization that acts coordinator for the survey.

Hattori points out that the survey, which had more than 3,000 respondents, sought to find out views of women on domestic violence. “Rather than seeking numbers, we questioned a cross section of women to find out their opinions or how their view the situation,” she said.

The findings are disturbing. More than half of the women surveyed said they had experienced some form of verbal or physical abuse from their male partners. Many also reported that what they worried about most was the lack of social and legal support and protection.

One woman in the survey said that while she was bleeding after a severe beating by her husband, she sought help from the police. But she was just told to check into a hotel.

“I was told coldly that it is just a matter between husband and wife,” she wrote, echoing many other similar stories that were documented in the survey.

Another woman spoke of constant fear as her husband continued to harass her, ignoring a court order forbidding him to approach her.

Keiko Tsuwa of Japan Women’s Association, says one reason why the situation is so bad for Japanese women is the difficulty in breaking away from deeply ingrained family values that regard domestic violence as a personal problem rather than a social one.

“Japan’s male-oriented society refuses to accept women as individuals but continue to support old customs that viewed women (only) as mothers or wives,” she explained.

Against such a backdrop, feminist organizations are demanding new legislation that will slap prison sentances or heavy fines on men who are found guilty of domestic violence.

In addition, they are pressing Japan’s male-dominated parliament to instruct the police and government institutions to report more accurately on such crimes as well provide more shelters and even arrest perpetrators without warrants.

“The situation has changed from the traditional belief that the problem should be solved within the family,” says Hattori.

A similar survey conducted by the Prime Minister’s Office in February covering more than 1,000 women showed that over 14 percent of women polled had experienced physical abuse that required medical treatement, while almost five percent reported life-threatening attacks.

The National Police Agency reported last month that cases of domestic violence, including killings, doubled to 443 incidents during the first six months of the year compared to the previous year. This, activists claim, is just the tip of the iceberg as most cases go unreported.

Activists point out that women’s economic dependence on their husbands makes them more vulnerable to beatings by their partners.

Tsuwa says that despite the fact that women manage their husbands’ pay cheques, they become helpless once they leave their families. In the event of divorce, for instance, Japanese laws reject a wife’s claim to a share of her husband’s pension.

Older women also tend to just suffer in silence because they know jobs are scarce for them at their age, making them the longest- suffering victims of abuse, the survey said.

Many women in their 50s wrote of regular beatings as well as mental suffering, having to bear constant verbal harassment such as being called a “fool” or “ugly” or not been spoken to by their husbands, some for years.

They live miserable lives, their pain bottled-up because they have no friends or family to confide in or ask for help.

Activists are heartened that more women are speaking up, making it possible now more than ever to discuss the issue of domestic violence in public.

“We see that women in their thirties and forties tend to be braver and more demanding because there is a growing consciousness for gaining better protection for their rights in this age group,”‘ says Tsuwa.

A recent gender equality survey by the government showed only 25 percent of adult respondents supporting sterotypical roles.

The number of people who believe marriage should not force women to give up their careers is also gradually increasing with 33.1 per cent of respondents supporting the idea this year compared with 23.4 per cent in November 1992.

“The Japanese people have undoubtedly changed,” said a government official in charge of promoting gender equality.