The Hindu Business Line : `The domestic violence Act is well-framed, but it should be implemented right'

There should be more publicity about this Act to increase awareness that it is possible for women to complain not only against physical but also emotional and psychological abuse. — Sarah Matthew, President, Feminist Association for Social Action

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, that came into force this October is an excellent law which has the potential to give relief to women who are physically, sexually and emotionally abused, but a concern is that the implementation rests with the State governments, says Ms Sarah Matthew, President of the Feminist Association for Social Action.

Excerpts from an interview:

The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (Domestic Violence Act) has become law, but do you have any concerns about its implementation?

First of all, I'd like to say that a lot of effort has gone into this Act and the rules have been framed with a lot of care. But a problem is that the rules have to be implemented by the State governments and my concern is that this should not become like the Dowry Prohibition Act, where the prohibition officers were supposed to be appointed by the state governments but never were.

What are the most distinctive features of this Act?

It has a very comprehensive definition of violence; it is not defined just as physical abuse, but also as sexual, verbal, emotional and economic abuse.

And not only of the wife, but other female members in the family too.

Yes, daughter, sister, mother, anybody resident. Basically because for married women there is nowhere to go... as we have no Matrimonial Property Act, which even Asian countries like Sri Lanka and Philippines have, apart from the western countries. Since we have no such Act there is no legal safeguard of right to residence. That's why this Act has been enlarged to include women in all relationships. For instance, a brother who inherits the family house cannot throw his sister out because he wants to sell it. If she has been resident there for long and has no other place, she has a right to stay or to go to a protection officer if he threatens to vacate her.

Surprisingly, it also includes women in live-in relationships.

Yes, relationships other than that of blood or a legal marriage, if they have existed for a sufficiently long period of time. This is because these women too need some protection on the basis of shelter; a `mistress' has no right of maintenance but she should not be arbitrarily thrown out. She has a right to resettle herself and the right to safety of residence. Many of us who run counselling centres are aware that in some cases the marriages are not legal because the man is married earlier and has concealed it; particularly in the case of NRIs.

On domestic violence, what kind of a problems are we facing in India?

As far as physical violence in the middle-classes is concerned, the level of physical violence in India is no higher than in any other country. I've studied domestic violence and shelters for battered women in the US and the level of physical violence is not substantially different.

Where alcoholism is concerned, there are other reasons, such as the desire to subjugate the woman and make her absolutely obedient. But where emotional violence is concerned, middle-class women in India seem to have a bigger problem. A lot of it seems to arise out of the conditions of the arranged marriage where one party, particularly the bridegroom's party, doesn't feel satisfied that their status has been sufficiently regarded.

In terms of dowry?

Not just in terms of dowry, but the gifts offered to the bridegroom's side and sometimes even with the quality of the wedding feast! In many cases, the woman is told that a condition for the marriage to continue is her cutting off relationship with her own family as they have "insulted" the husband and his family. This was so even in the case Business Line referred to me — of an Indian woman who now lives in London; close to the marriage date, the dowry demand escalated and the bride's brother made a public derogatory refusal.

After the marriage the husband told the woman that she could save her marriage only if she cut off all relationship with her mother and brothers in India; even if she has a child, it should have nothing to do with her family.

A young man recently told me that he doesn't want dowry but the girl he met requested him in private to demand dowry, saying that otherwise her family would give her little or nothing.

This is not something we can dismiss out of hand. Because I have come across two or three instances where girls who were not given dowry at the time of marriage were also not given an equal share of property at a later stage, which the Indian law, both for Christians and Hindus, stipulates — that the daughters and sons should get equal share. But again, in our country, unlike in western countries, there is no law for testamentary regulation.

Can you explain that?

Where you cannot write more than one third of your property away from your legal descendants; if you do, they have the right to challenge. But, here, it is different; I know of an Indian doctor with two sons and one daughter who wrote a will saying after his death everything was to be shared equally by both his sons and the daughter gets nothing.

Returning to this Act, it is one thing to legislate, but how many women will go out to seek help?

A lot of women today are willing to seek help provided they can do it under conditions of dignity and with some assurance that they will get a fair deal and justice in a reasonable period of time. A recent magazine article on domestic violence says that there are 1.5 lakh cases registered on domestic violence, so the figure is escalating rapidly. What is needed is more publicity about this Act to increase awareness among women that it is possible to complain not only against physical but also against emotional and psychological abuse, and to make the complaint forms easily available.

What about the public glare? Surely women don't like it, but once the media gets hold of a case, it is splashed all over the newspapers and TV channels.

That may be so but, on the other hand, in recent cases, particularly where women are murdered or raped, media publicity seems to be the only thing that secures a conviction. Perhaps we have to go through a process where relentless media publicity is required to get a conviction and, later on, we may not find that necessary. In this Act, that is why women have to seek redressal through a protection officer. If correctly implemented, it is the protection officer who would take up the case with the magistrate or the police rather than the woman herself.

Who is the protection officer?

According to the rules, that is supposed to be a qualified professional appointed full time by the State within the area of every magisterial district. The qualifications and standards of such officers are clearly specified in the Act; if already a serving government officer, he/she should be at the level of a Class I officer. Also, a committee has to be appointed, just as under the Sexual Harassment Act, comprising government officers, judiciary and registered service providers, including counselling centres or NGOs running short-stay homes for battered women. My immediate concern is whether the protection officers will be appointed speedily and as suggested in every magistrate's district.

Do you see any shortfalls in the Act?

Yes, I'd say emotional and psychological abuse are very subjective terms and it is possible that men could feel harassed under the terms of the Act. As an honorary counsel in family courts in Chennai I have found that it is not always a man's fault when there is a distressed marriage, and whoever has the upper hand in terms of financial resources becomes the oppressor.

So what does a man do in such a case; he, of course, has no recourse under this Act?

No, I would have preferred a family law that is strictly enforced and a matrimonial property act with more clarity in terms of relationships. We can't equate the relationship between a husband and wife with some other relationships, particularly live-in relationships. There are grey areas that arise out of specific Indian conditions, but whether that is going to be a good thing remains to be seen!

As women get more educated, do you see the problem of dowry, gifts, whatever you call it, coming down?

No, it is not coming down. And here I won't just blame the groom's side. I don't feel the sort of idealistic feminism that has developed in some parts of the world, such as (South) Korea or Philippines, has developed in our country.

Could you define `idealistic feminism'?

In South Korea and the Philippines women seem to have a much stronger sense of their commitment to society and upholding of certain social values. They feel very strongly, particularly in the Philippines, that female political leadership has very important social values to contribute to society and the nation.

Response may be sent to rasheeda@thehindu.co.in