Women Speak Out in Solomon Islands

September 2004 -(Amnesty International) "I was 14 years old then. One of the policemen came one night around 10pm, pointed a gun at me and ordered me to follow him to see the other men... The Commander..., he pointed his gun at me and raped me. I suffered pain and bleeding."

Violence against women, including the rape of young girls such as the one quoted above, has been an entrenched feature of a five-year armed conflict in the Solomon Islands. The perpetrators - whether members of the police, armed groups or private individuals - have rarely been brought to justice.

One year ago an Australian-led Pacific police force, backed by soldiers, started to restore law and order and 3,500 people were arrested.

Courts now face a rapidly increasing case load of people charged with serious offences including murder, rape and torture. Thousands of illegally-held weapons have been confiscated and the thriving trade in extortion and intimidation appears to have ended.

However, when AI delegates visited the country in April-May they found that, despite these improvements, the voices of women are rarely being heard. AI is concerned that, even though the armed conflict is over, women in the Solomon Islands remain at risk of violence and abused women lack safe access to justice. Their fear of reprisals in reporting such violence to the police is not being taken seriously in efforts to restore law and order.

Many women who have suffered violence will never bring their cases to court, often because male relatives object rather than offer support.

Discrimination against women is deeply rooted in traditional customs. A cabinet minister who dragged his former wife along the ground so violently that she needed hospital treatment, had a serious assault charge dropped and was convicted of disorderly behaviour and violently resisting arrest. Witnesses and victims fear perpetrators’ revenge and their continuing influence among disbanded armed groups and 400 demobilized police. While rape can carry a life prison term, perpetrators getting away with a few years' imprisonment make women reluctant to report rape.

Despite the prejudice, more and more women are organizing themselves and speaking out about the abuses they have suffered. They showed courage during the conflict in calling for an end to the violence and discrimination against them. One such group, Women for Peace, continued to campaign despite their members being threatened with violence by male relatives.

Now, women's groups are demanding more involvement in post-conflict reconstruction programs and projects around the country. In March, a visiting Australian parliamentary delegation criticized aid projects which failed to give women the central role Australia had promised in such activities. AI is calling on all those involved in these processes to use the opportunity to promote human rights and to make them more accessible to women.

From: http://web.amnesty.org/wire/September2004/Solomon_Islands