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RIGHTS OF WOMEN
Judges, experts discuss integration of women's rights
Pravit Rojanaphruk
The Sunday Nation September 8, 2013 1:00 am
There is a possibility that the so-called "battered wife syndrome" can be considered as evidence to possibly mitigate criminal action against women who end up killing their spouse after being repeatedly subjected to physical or emotional abuse.
However, Thai society still lacks enough knowledge about this problem.
Supreme Court judge Vacharin Patjekvinyusakul said there was a lack of clear stipulations under Thai criminal law that battered wife syndrome could apply as a mitigating factor, though some judges have started considering it as a bona fide factor in court proceedings.
"The penalty is not being lessened, but the court is inculcating it in the proceeding," he told the two-day Judicial Colloquium on Gender Equality Jurisprudence and the Role of the Judiciary in Promoting Women's Access to Justice.
The forum, which wrapped up on Thursday, was organised by the International Commission of Jurists, United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN WOMEN) and the Office of Thai Judiciary under the Justice Ministry.
Judges and experts from ASEAN countries took part in the meeting to discuss how to better integrate the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) into each country's judicial system.
CEDAW is an international human-rights instrument that requires member countries to take action in compliance with its edicts, and Thailand is party to it.
However, women's activist Naiyana Supapung pointed out that the judiciary insists that domestic laws take precedence over the convention and that they cannot comply with the convention if it is in conflict with domestic laws.
"Creating awareness is more important than pushing for legal reform," Naiyana said. She is director of Teeranat Kanjanauksorn Foundation.
The meeting also heard good practices from other countries.
Retired Supreme Court judge Adolfo S Azcuna told the meeting about his court's gender responsibility committee - perhaps the first in the region - and how the Philippine government devotes 5 per cent of its budget to gender equality. In Indonesia, judges were undergoing training on gender sensitivity but it could be waived due to budget constraints.
Judge Adele Kent from Canada's National Judicial Institute stressed the importance of educating everybody in the judicial system, including police, about gender equality. Kent was sent over by Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development, which provided financial support for the meeting.
Roberta Clark, director of UN WOMEN Regional Office for Asia and Pacific, told The Nation that though true change begins with the individual, the state had an obligation to reform laws and protect women's rights especially since gender bias is still prevalent in the region. She went on to say that there were many opportunities for change across ASEAN and everybody should learn from one another.
The meeting recommended that gender equality committees should be established within judiciaries in order to monitor and support the application of gender-equality principles and gender-responsive practices within the judiciary, though participants from Indonesia said it would be difficult.
A regional network of judges to promote continuing dialogue on the application of CEDAW and other international human rights treaties in judicial systems was also recommended.
