End violence against women and girls

However, as we commemorate the International Day of Elimination of Violence against Women on Monday there is still much work to be done. Prevention of domestic violence is one of the areas in which China is still lagging behind. The current requirements for having a case of domestic violence filed or tried are such that they only effectively acknowledge physical abuse as violence, and procedures expose survivors of domestic violence to great stress. Most perpetrators of domestic violence never face official intervention, making repeat offences a real likelihood. Further, the focus among responsible institutions is largely on mediation, conducted after an incident has occurred and often without the necessary knowledge or sensitivity. China lacks a strategy or stable financing to prevent violence from happening in the first place. Initiatives spearheaded by civil society and even private sector companies, supported by the United Nations in China, have shown the potential benefits of mobilizing youth, and especially young men, to promote equal relationships and prevent violence against women and girls. Such efforts need to be scaled up and institutionalized.

Most importantly, though, the only form of violence against women and girls currently being addressed in China is violence conducted within the home. This is a very large part of the violence women and girls face, both in China and globally, but it is not the only form of violence to which women and girls are subjected. Violence and sexual harassment in schools, universities, and workplaces is an under-addressed area. Having a larger and more comprehensive view of violence against women is necessary not only to prevent and respond to violence, but also to better understand the nature of violence against women and girls and how it relates to gendered power relations, gendered roles and expectations, and discrimination on the basis of gender in general.

The United Nations system in China has prioritized violence against women and girls as one of its main areas of focus. We will continue to support efforts made by government, civil society and other partners in China to deliver on the right of women to enjoy to a life free from violence and discrimination, through laws criminalizing it, through effective implementation of laws at all levels, through better services to the survivors of violence and their families, and, importantly, through removing harmful attitudes condoning violence against women and girls. Only by having a comprehensive view of violence against women and girls, the power relations it helps support, and how it is linked to the broader field of gender discrimination, can we hope to prevent violence against Chinese women and girls.

The author is the head of UN Women China.

(China Daily 11/25/2013 page8)