Violence against women in Melanesia and East Timor - Office of ...

26 v i o l e n c e a g a i n s t w o m e n i n m e l a n e s i a a n d e a s t t i m o r
Box 4.4: The Family and Sexual Violence Action Committee in Papua New Guinea
The FSVAC was founded in 2001 to enhance coordination among organisations working on violence against
women in six focus areas:
1. institutional framework
2. legal reforms
3. services for victims
4. perpetrators
5. community prevention and response
6. data collection and research.
The FSVAC’s role is to coordinate activities in each focus area, which involves working with dozens of groups
around the country (with funding from bilateral and multilateral donors). Despite having only a small staff, the
FSVAC has made valuable contributions in numerous ways, including: assisting with reform of sexual offences
and child welfare legislation; promoting the Family Protection Bill; distributing legal literacy materials;
developing training and advocacy materials; running national awareness campaigns, especially during the
global 16 Days of Activism to End Violence Against Women; collecting data from service providers; successfully
lobbying for the establishment of FSCs in hospitals; and commissioning research. Provincial-level committees
have also been set up in several provinces to coordinate local actions.
Source: Bradley and Kesno 2001
Strengthening women’s political participation
East Timor is unique in the region for strongly promoting the political empowerment
of women as a means of preventing violence against women. Remarkable progress
has been made in increasing women’s participation in public decision-making and
leadership. During the 2001 elections, various affirmative action measures resulted
in a national Parliament with 26 per cent female membership. The Independent
Electoral Commission, which oversees and monitors the three levels of elections,
has 25 per cent female membership. Women are also increasingly represented in
high positions in government (Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste 2007). Box 4.5
describes an innovative approach to grassroots empowerment of women that has
beneficial effects on violence against women.
Regional initiatives to build capacity of local institutions
Regional coordination and exchanges among groups have been critical for the growth
of the anti-violence movement in Melanesia and East Timor. The FWCC, in particular,
has played a central role in mentoring local organisations and supporting regional
initiatives. The Centre also provides technical support for other organisations working
in the region, such as the VWC. The FWCC convenes the Pacific Women’s Network
on Violence against Women, which meets every four years and carries out regional
training workshops for network members, including civil society organisations and
government departments that deal with violence against women. Support is provided
through ongoing in-country support visits and the regional training and attachment