Judges, experts discuss integration of women's rights

[Lite Beer]

RIGHTS OF WOMEN
Judges, experts discuss integration of women's rights
Pravit Rojanaphruk
The Sunday Nation

BANGKOK: -- 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.

-- The Nation 2013-09-08

[noitom]

The Thais are talking about creating awareness. How do they propose to do this?

[yooper2001]

what womens rights? This is a country that is ruled by man culture where a thai man of 25 will marry a young thai woman 21 and have 1 or 2 children then when he is 30 years old he will leave his family and marry another 21 year old and leave it up to his ex to support his kids as best as she can. The women do not even go to court for child support because they know it is useless. Many lawyers in America get rich from taking ex husbands to court for child support, but maybe lawyers in Thailand aren't smart enough.

[BudRight]

Abandoning notions of women being owned, be it by their families or husbands and rejecting the dowry system which supports this ownership would be an excellent start.

[indyuk]

Thailand needs to make Thai women full Juristic persons now. Thailand will benefit enormously if the human rights of Thai citizens are stated clearly in the constitution, or in an amendment to the charter that the states that all citizens regardless of sex, race, religion or ethnicity are equal.

[toybits]

Surely, they cannot be just speaking about spousal abuse only. What about equal rights to having foreign husbands of Thai women to gain citizenship in Thailand. That has to be tackled here as well.

[Arkady]

what womens rights? This is a country that is ruled by man culture where a thai man of 25 will marry a young thai woman 21 and have 1 or 2 children then when he is 30 years old he will leave his family and marry another 21 year old and leave it up to his ex to support his kids as best as she can. The women do not even go to court for child support because they know it is useless. Many lawyers in America get rich from taking ex husbands to court for child support, but maybe lawyers in Thailand aren't smart enough.

Many of the women are a lot younger than 21 when they are knocked up like this and the men often leave in much less than 5 years. They are frequently on their way before the first child is born. Most of these couples don't register their marriages which gives no basis for any legal pursuit of alimony or child support. Even if they have, any awards by the court are not enforced. So most women don't bother to try.

[Arkady]

At least a couple of things have changed that directly affect foreigners.

In 1992 the Nationality Act was amended to provide Thai nationality to children of Thai mothers and foreign fathers. Without this amendment most TV members' Thai children would not be Thai and would have no rights to education or healthcare and would need work permits.

In 1999 a ministerial regulation put Thai women married to foreigners on the same basis as Thai men married to foreign men in respect of rights to own land in Thailand. Now the couple only has to sign a piece of paper in the Land Office to legalise the Thai spouse's land purchases. Previously Thai men with foreign spouses could buy land without signing anything but Thai women with foreign husbands or live-in boyfriends were completely banned from buying land.

In 2008 the Nationality Act was amended to allow foreign men married to Thai women the right to apply for naturalisation without being permanent residents. They are still not treated on a par with foreign women married to Thais in this respect but this was a step in the right direction.