Demographic and Health Survey 2009-10 - Timor-Leste Ministry of ...

236 | Domestic Violence
To determine the degree of marital control husbands exercise over their wives, ever-married
women were asked whether their current or last husband exhibited each of the following controlling
behaviors: a) becomes jealous or gets angry if she talks to other men; b) accuses her of being
unfaithful; c) does not permit meetings with female friends; d) tries to limit contact with her family;
e) insists on knowing where she is at all times; and f) does not trust her with any money.
The accumulation of such behaviors is more significant than the results for any single
behavior and so, the proportion of women whose husbands exhibited at least three of the specified
behaviors is highlighted.
The findings show that nearly one in three (31 percent) ever-married women reported that
their husbands insist on knowing where they are at all times; a similar proportion (31 percent) said
that their husbands get jealous or angry if they talk to other men; and 15 percent said that their
husbands frequently accuse them of being unfaithful. Nearly one in 10 women reported that their
husbands do not allow them to meet with their female friends, and 8 percent said that their husbands
do not trust them with money. Relatively uncommon is a husband’s attempt to limit his wife’s contact
with her family (reported by only 4 percent of ever-married women). Fourteen percent of women said
that their husbands exhibit three or more of the above-mentioned controlling behaviors, and
53 percent said that their husbands exhibit none of the controlling behaviors.
There is hardly any difference in the proportion of ever-married women who report that their
husbands exhibit three or more of the specified behaviors by age. There is an inverse relationship
between the number of living children a woman has and the degree of control her husband exercises
over them. For example, 23 percent of women with no living children reported that their husbands
exhibit three or more of the specified controlling behaviors, compared with 12 percent of women with
five or more children. Women who were formerly married (22 percent) are more likely than currently
married women (13 percent) to say that their former husbands exhibited three or more of the
controlling behaviors.
The extent to which husbands exhibit three or more controlling behaviors is higher among
urban women (25 percent) than the rural women (10 percent). This finding corroborates the fact that
women in urban areas more often face domestic violence as discussed earlier in this chapter. Men in
Dili (30 percent), Ermera (22 percent), and Lautem (16 percent) are more likely to exercise
controlling behavior over their wives. Differences by education are not significant. Women in the
highest wealth quintile report higher proportions of controlling behaviors exhibited by their husbands.
16.9 TYPES OF SPOUSAL VIOLENCE
This section of the chapter is devoted to violence perpetrated by intimate partners who are
married to the respondent or who live with the respondent as if married. Since spousal or intimate
partner violence is the most common form of violence among women age 15-49, the 2009-10 TLDHS
collected detailed information on the different types of violence experienced—physical, sexual, and
emotional. Currently married women were asked about violence perpetrated by their current husband,
and formerly married women were asked about violence perpetrated by their most recent husband.
Respondents were asked about seven specific acts of physical violence, two acts of sexual violence,
and three acts of emotional violence. The acts are listed in Table 16.8.
The table shows that 34 percent of ever-married women have ever experienced physical
violence at the hands of their husband or partner, and 31 percent have experienced physical violence
in the past 12 months. Three percent have ever experienced sexual violence, and 2 percent
experienced sexual violence in the past 12 months. The findings also show that 8 percent of women
have ever experienced emotional violence and have experienced emotional violence in the past
12 months. Overall, 36 percent of ever-married women have experienced some kind of violence
(physical, sexual, or emotional) by a husband or partner.