Community perceptions and activisms regarding domestic violence against women: Perspectives from rural Bangladesh

Abstract

Community is a basic unit of social organisation, which influences many aspects in our lives and patterns of actions. The aspect of community is seldom addressed in the realm of domestic violence initiatives, although community`s perception and role, who are within women`s close network, is important in curbing domestic violence since members of the community easily see and hear what is happening against women. My research aimed at exploring community`s perceptions and activisms with regard to domestic violence against women at different rural settings of two Bangladeshi districts namely Netrokona and Mymensingh. Using interpretative qualitative approach, I excavated the perceptions and activism of the majority Bengali community as well as indigenous matriarchal Garo community. Living in strict patriarch rule, Bengali women usually are the easy victims of different forms of violence, but matriarchal structure also does not preclude Garo men to condone violence against women. Both the communities have some intervention mechanisms. Shalish or local arbitration is the most widely used community intervention in rural area although it has some in-built shortcomings. This study has significant implication in generating new knowledge and providing guidelines for future course of actions in redressing domestic violence.