Conservative Christianity and Intimate Partner Violence in Brazil

Based on empirical research in a women’s shelter in São Paulo, Brazil, this article examines how ‘secular’ professionals and service users negotiate conservative Christian faith, gender roles and domestic violence. The article demonstrates how staff use theological arguments with feminist interpretations of religion, in order to better communicate with abused women of faith. A key finding is that both the religious service users and the ‘secular’ professionals discover it is not religion per se which allows for situations of violence, but rather the patriarchal way in which conservative Christianity is taught in some churches, ultimately functioning as a method of controlling women. Moreover, through feminist consciousness-raising and attention to women’s rights, some abused women of faith find ways of negotiating the violence they experience, leading to an understanding of it as both personal and political.

Allowing a Defence to Those Who Commit Crime Under Coercive Control

Abused women who are coerced to commit crime have no adequate legal defence. Historically, martial coercion may have been pled, but since its repeal and lack of replacement, abused women have been left without adequate protection in the criminal justice system. Duress would seem to be the logical defence in such a situation, but its construction by the courts means that women are still left with no defence. If a woman resists the coercion to commit crime, and instead protects herself against the abuse, she will equally have no suitable defence. Parliament were presented with the opportunity to rectify this problem when passing the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, but despite the Lords’ support, proposals were rejected by the Commons. Whilst research shows that crime committed under coercive control is not an insignificant problem, the current law does not protect some of the most vulnerable from prosecution.

Advances in Research on Abused Women in China: Bibliometric Analysis by CiteSpace

China has made remarkable progress in preventing and intervening in domestic violence against women. Scholars have reported on this development. Methodologically, this paper, which draws on 3362 references selected from the China National Knowledge Infrastructure, uses the bibliometric method to summarize the characteristics, evolution, and frontiers of key topics into research on abused women in China between 1993 and 2020. The paper has three key findings. (1) The volume of literature has grown continuously, but in three stages: initial, rapid growth, and peak fluctuation; (2) the topic has five research hotspots: fundamental issues in domestic violence against women; new legislation, notably the 2015 Anti-Domestic Violence Law; social support for abused women; matrimonial disputes involving abused women; and conviction and sentencing of abused women who kill their husbands; and (3) the current research frontiers lie within the defects of the Anti-Domestic Violence Law and challenges in the implementation of the law. In addition, the paper examines characteristics and limitations of the study on abused women in China and suggests changes in practice, policy, and directions for future research.

Women who kill abusive partners: reviewing the impact of section 55(3) ‘fear of serious violence’ manslaughter – some empirical findings

In October 2010, section 55(3) of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 came into force, and ‘fear of serious violence’ was expressly included in the statute as a qualifying trigger for ‘loss of self-control’ voluntary manslaughter, a partial defence to murder. This development (albeit that it is a gender-neutral provision) was anticipated to be an important step in recognising the situation of a woman who, in fearing a partner’s violence, control and abuse, kills to preserve her own life. The provision is only operative where ‘fear of serious violence’ and ‘loss of self-control’ can be established, which, given its limitations, prohibits many women in fear of a partner’s violence and coercion from successfully using this defence. The author’s review of the legal reform and the case law, together with 40 homicide cases involving female defendants who killed intimate current or former partners (April 2011–March 2016) demonstrates that this defence, which promised to deliver justice for abused women, has been little used. Women’s vulnerability and fear and response to intimate partner abuse and control is still insufficiently understood and explored and is evident where juries return murder rather than manslaughter verdicts. Further reform is needed to the legal framework regarding this and other defences in order to achieve a just law by incorporating women’s experience of, and defensive response to, violence and control in its many forms.

The role of loss of self-control in defences to homicide: a critical analysis of Anglo-Australian developments

The provocation defence has been the subject of legislative reform in England and Australia over the past 10 years. In England, it was abolished by section 56 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 and replaced with a partial defence of loss of control. In Australia, the provocation defence has been abolished in some states and significantly reformed in others. One of the key challenges for law reform has been how to ensure homicide defences are not overly restrictive for abused women who kill their abuser, while at the same time ensuring that homicide defences are not overly expansive for domestic abusers who ultimately kill their partner. With these challenges in mind, we critically examine the operation of the loss of control defence in England. There has been significant reform to the provocation defence across Australia, and, in this article, we also focus on the most recent reforms in Queensland and New South Wales. We conclude with some suggestions for further reform.

"These Questions Have Everything That Happens to me": Analysis of a Femicide Risk Assessment Tool for Abused Women in Brazil

Purpose The purpose of this mixed-methods triangulation study was to assess the face validity and comprehension of a femicide risk assessment tool, the Danger Assessment-Brazil (DA-Brazil) among women seeking care in a one stop center for abused women in Curitiba, Brazil. Our secondary aim was to assess professionals' perceptions of feasibility for using the DA-Brazil in the same setting. Method Fifty-five women experiencing relationship violence completed the instrument and participated in cognitive interviews about their experience; professionals attending survivors were also interviewed. Results The vast majority of women described the DA-Brazil instrument as being easy to comprehend (n = 41, 73.2%). Nearly half of participants (n = 26, 46.4%) had some kind of question regarding the DA-Brazil calendar, a tool to visualize abuse frequency and severity. Queries aligned with five categories: recollection of dates, scale, relationship status, terminology, and discomfort. Professionals reported that the DA-Brazil instrument would support referral decision-making. Conclusion The overall face validity and comprehension of the DA-Brazil appears to be high. The majority of challenges were around the calendar activity. Professional perceptions of the DA-Brazil suggest a high degree of feasibility for its use in Brazilian healthcare settings. In order for the DA-Brazil to effectively be administered with facilitated support there is a need for training on the best use of the instrument. Accurate assessment of femicide risk is critical in a country like Brazil with high rates of femicide. The DA-Brazil provides a valid assessment of femicide risk and has the potential to trigger early intervention for those at risk.

Prevalence of domestic violence and abuse among Saudi women: an online based cross-sectional study

Background: Domestic violence and abuse (DVA) has a major impact on women's lives, their psychological, physical, and reproductive health and mostly occurring behind closed doors. The objective of this study was to explore the prevalence of DVA among Saudi women, to determine factors related to each type of abuse, identify sources of abuse, and level of disclosure.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted through an online survey using social networking platforms. Four hundred and twenty-one women completed the validated Arabic version of the NorVold domestic abuse questionnaire.Results: The lifetime prevalence of DVA was 69.9%. The most prevalent type of violence was emotional abuse, followed by physical abuse (47%), and subsequently sexual abuse (35%). Among the abused women, 25.6% (n=75) had experienced all types of abuse. Fathers, mothers, and brothers were the main perpetrators of emotional violence, while brothers, mothers, and fathers were the main perpetrators of physical abuse; relatives (not from the family) and brothers were the main perpetrators of sexual violence. Approximately 26% of the emotionally abused try to seek help, 78.7% did not disclose the abuse to their doctors, and 16.5% of the physically abused try to seek help; however, 82.2% were unable to inform their doctors after abuse, only 8.7% of sexually abused women try to get help after abuse, and 90% cannot inform their doctors.Conclusions: DVA against Saudi women is unacknowledged, and national research data are urgently required to assess the prevalence of DVA and risk factors for abused women.

EMPODERAMENTO DAS MULHERES ATRAVÉS DE CAMPANHAS CONTRA A VIOLÊNCIA

Marketing Social é o uso das ferramentas do Mix de Marketing para trazer mudanças positivas para a sociedade, numa causa sem fins lucrativos. Ele é comumente utilizado por governos em estratégias como campanhas antitabagistas, contra a direção alcoolizada e combate a doenças. A Lei Maria da Penha e a Campanha Ligue 180 são exemplos de campanhas de marketing social voltadas ao empoderamento feminino. Este trabalho buscou avaliar os resultados destas campanhas nas vidas de duas gerações de mulheres. Divididas em dois grupos etários e entrevistadas, pôde-se entender o que estas mulheres entendem empoderamento como liberdade de expressão e tratamento igualitário; que não acreditam na efetividade das leis de proteção à mulher; e que, apesar de não acabarem com o problema, ao menos as campanhas ajudam a conscientizar a mulher em estado de risco sobre como pedir auxílio. Devido à metodologia e caráter homogêneo da amostra, este estudo não pode ser generalizado. Palavras-chave: Empoderamento. Mulher. Violência. Abstract Social Marketing is the use of Marketing Mix tools in order to bring positive change to society, with no lucrative goals. It is most commonly used by governments in strategies such as anti-smoking campaigns, anti-drunk driving and for fighting diseases. The Maria da Penha Law and the Ligue 180 Campaign are examples of social marketing campaigns aimed towards empowering women. This paper sought to measure the results of these campaigns in the lives of two generations of women. They were divided by age and interviewed, allowing us to understand that they saw empowerment as freedom of speech and egalitarian treatment; that the laws don’t protect women as they should; and, even though the campaigns don’t solve the problems, at least they bring awareness to abused women that they can seek help. Due to the methodology and homogeneity of the sample used, this study cannot be generalized. Keywords: Empowerment. Woman. Violence.