Report - Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights

<strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> right to adequate housing and land. Excerpts <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> testimonies, <strong>the</strong> key issues and obstacles
identified in <strong>the</strong> testimonies, and <strong>the</strong> corresponding recommendations to Pacific Island States are
outlined below.
3.1 Violence Against Women
3.1.1 Domestic violence
“I am a victim <strong>of</strong> domestic violence, my mo<strong>the</strong>r was a victim <strong>of</strong> domestic violence, and
I was raised in a family o<strong>the</strong>r than my own because <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> domestic violence. This is
a personal story <strong>of</strong> my mo<strong>the</strong>r, who was beaten up by my fa<strong>the</strong>r during his alcohol rages,
for not cleaning <strong>the</strong> house as he expected.
When we were growing up we always knew what mood my fa<strong>the</strong>r was in and when to
leave <strong>the</strong> house. When he was violent my mo<strong>the</strong>r would take us and run to an Aunty’s
house. Due to <strong>the</strong> violence she left my fa<strong>the</strong>r and returned to her home on <strong>the</strong> outer
island. She lost her job and couldn’t take all three children. So she left me behind with
ano<strong>the</strong>r family, who were also struggling on one income. Her bro<strong>the</strong>r allocated her some
land but it was far away and had no access to electricity. She had to build <strong>the</strong> house,
clear <strong>the</strong> land (working by kerosene light) and buy <strong>the</strong> kerosene. My sisters say I had
<strong>the</strong> easier life because I lived in <strong>the</strong> city with tap water.
Now I work on making sure that this doesn’t continue to happen with my daughters and
my sister’s daughters.” (Cook Islands)
Domestic violence can be physical, verbal, emotional and even economical (e.g. controlling household
finances). Research undertaken by Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre (FWCC) in 2001 shows that at least 66%
<strong>of</strong> women reported being beaten up by <strong>the</strong>ir husbands, and 3 out <strong>of</strong> 10 on a repeated basis. FWCC
deals with 1000-1500 clients per year, who are mostly women with a history <strong>of</strong> violence in <strong>the</strong>ir lives.
For many women experiencing domestic violence, <strong>the</strong> only option is to leave <strong>the</strong>ir home. Even if women
are joint owners/tenants or even sole owners/tenants, and have secure tenure, many women still feel
<strong>the</strong> only available option is to leave <strong>the</strong>ir home to escape violence. This leaves many women and <strong>the</strong>ir
children vulnerable to homelessness or to living in inadequate housing. The violence against a woman
and her children can lead to violations <strong>of</strong> a range <strong>of</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r rights as well (i.e., restricting <strong>the</strong> right to
work and opportunities for finance), which may in turn prevent women from being able to afford
adequate housing when <strong>the</strong>y leave a home that is violent. Only 39% <strong>of</strong> Fijian women aged over fifteen
years are in <strong>the</strong> labour force; 80% <strong>of</strong> women have no jobs or income. 15 The Governor <strong>of</strong> New Zealand’s
Reserve Bank (using base figures from a study on family violence conducted in New Zealand) found
that $97 million was <strong>the</strong> direct cost <strong>of</strong> domestic violence borne by victims and <strong>the</strong>ir families and that
<strong>the</strong> New Zealand government spends $200 million on welfare, law enforcement and health care for
victims <strong>of</strong> domestic violence.
Customary, religious and cultural laws and practices that discriminate against women can reinforce
women’s vulnerability to violence and associated violations <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> right to adequate housing. For
example, in Tonga women are not allowed to own land; in Fiji, women can own land but cannot access
land for <strong>the</strong>ir use.
15
Statistics provided by Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre.
22 WOMEN’S RIGHTS TO ADEQUATE HOUSEING AND LAND