Below is a recent question/survivor case we received:

I am a victim of violence. My husband was arrested and now he is out on bail. The court date is a few days later. Many people know and he is now angry because I told on him. I am scared and I want to save my marriage. I need to know if he can file a defamation case against me for being honest. The hearing is in a family court and I will tell the judge that I don’t want to proceed with the case. I need to know whether he would be able to file a defamation case against me if I tell the judge that I don’t want to press charges. I have a baby. I can’t raise him on my own.

For those with experience in the domestic violence field, please provide all the advice you can. Your advice and responses are extremely valuable as they may help other survivors dealing with the same issues. Also, any survivors or any others who have been exposed to such issues or gender abuse, please provide your comments and advice as well.

The UNFPA has launched an excellent online exhibit documenting the fight against gender abuse. The website documents UNFPA’s experience in the field supporting projects that address violence against women in its many forms, and also documents approaches that can be used to confront the problem on a larger scale. The site is a great resource to learn more about domestic violence and how we can combat it in our community.  

UNFPA: Ending Violence Against Women

Through my work in gender abuse issues, I’ve noticed people responding in very different ways whenever I bring up my work or talk about domestic violence.  Some people change the topic and get uncomfortable, while others talk about it sarcastically, at times even jokingly.  Which brings me to my main question:  Why are people so uncomfortable about asking questions or speaking out about domestic violence issues? And why especially in the South Asian community does it remain such a taboo topic?