Islamic Relief is an international aid agency that provides humanitarian relief and development programmes in over 40 countries, serving communities in need regardless of race, political affiliation, gender or belief.
Islam in Australia is a minority religious affiliation. According to the 2016 Census in Australia, the combined number of people who self-identified as Muslims in Australia, from all forms of Islam, constituted 604,200 people, or 2.6% of the total Australian population, an increase of over 15% of its previous population share of 2.2% reported in the previous census 5 years earlier.
A women's shelter, also known as a women's refuge and battered women's shelter, is a place of temporary protection and support for women escaping domestic violence and intimate partner violence of all forms. The term is also frequently used to describe a location for the same purpose that is open to people of all genders at risk.
The situation of Human Rights in Pakistan is complex as a result of the country's diversity, large population, its status as a developing country and a sovereign Islamic democracy with a mixture of both Islamic and secular law. The Constitution of Pakistan provides for fundamental rights. The Clauses also provide for an independent Supreme Court, separation of executive and judiciary, an independent judiciary, independent Human Rights commission and freedom of movement within the country and abroad. However these clauses are not respected in practice.
Sectarian violence in Pakistan refers to attacks and counter-attacks against people and places in Pakistan motivated by antagonism toward the target's sect, usually a religious extremist group. Targets in Pakistan include the Shia, Barelvis, Sunnis, Sufis, Ahmadis, Hindus and small groups of Deobandis. As many as 4,000 people are estimated to have been killed by Shia-Sunni sectarian attacks in Pakistan between 1987–2007. And since 2008, thousands of Shia have been killed by Sunni extremists according to Human Rights Watch (HRW). One significant aspect of the attacks in Pakistan is that militants often target Sunni and Shia places of worship during prayers in order to maximize fatalities and to "emphasize the religious dimensions of their attack". Human Rights Watch also states that in 2011 and 2012, Pakistan minority groups including Hindus, Ahmadi, and Christians "faced unprecedented insecurity and persecution in the country". Attacks on Sufi shrines by Salafis have also been reported.
Women's Aid Organisation or WAO is a Malaysian non-governmental organisation that fights for women's rights and specifically against violence against women. It was founded in 1982 and continues to play a leading role in the Malaysian women's rights movement working within the fields of advocacy, public education as well as law and policy reforms.
The relationship between Islam and domestic violence is disputed. Even among Muslims, the uses and interpretations of Sharia, the moral code and religious law of Islam, lack consensus. Variations in interpretation are due to different schools of Islamic jurisprudence, histories and politics of religious institutions, conversions, reforms, and education.
In the Constitution of Bangladesh, Islam is referred to twice in the introduction and Part I of the constitution. The document begins with the Islamic phrase which in English is translated as “In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful” and article (2A) declares that :"Islam is the state religion of the republic". Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has stated that Bangladesh will be governed in line with the spirit of the Constitution of Medina. But at the same time, Constitution of Bangladesh pays lip service to secularism as it is one of the four fundamental principles of the original Constitution of Bangladesh. Despite having Islam as the state religion by 2A. Bangladesh is mostly governed by secular laws, set up during the times when the region was ruled by the British Crown. The constitution also states that "the State shall ensure equal status and equal right in the practice of the Hindu, Buddhist, Christian and other religions". "Freedom of religion" is its basic structure guaranteed by the Bangladeshi constitution in which it calls for equal rights to all its citizens irrespective of their religious differences and it also bans discrimination on the grounds of religion on various platforms. Bangladesh is one of the few secular Muslim-majority nations and "proselytizing" i.e. conversions from one religion to another are generally accepted and is legalized by law under article 41 of the constitution, subject to law, public order, and morality. The major religion in Bangladesh is Islam (90.9%), but a significant percentage of the population adheres to Hinduism (8%) as per the 2011 census; other religious groups include Buddhists 0.6%,, Christians, and Animists (0.2%). Bangladesh was founded as a secular state, but Islam was made the state religion in the 1980s. But in 2010, the High Court held up the secular principles of the 1972 constitution. The High Court also strengthened its stance against punishments by Islamic edict (fatwa), following complaints of brutal sentences carried out against women by extra-legal village courts.
In Australia, domestic violence is defined by the Family Law Act 1975 as "violent, threatening or other behaviour by a person that coerces or controls a member of the person's family, or causes the family member to be fearful".
Refuge is a United Kingdom charity providing specialist support for women and children experiencing domestic violence. It was founded by author and men's rights activist Erin Pizzey. Refuge provides a national network of specialist services, including emergency refuge accommodation (refuges), community outreach, independent domestic violence advocacy (IDVAs), culturally specific services and a team of child support workers. Refuge also runs the Freephone 24-Hour National Domestic Abuse Helpline in partnership with Women's Aid. Unfortunately, the National Domestic Abuse Helpline is only available for women.
Women in Malaysia receive support from the Malaysian government concerning their rights to advance, to make decisions, to health, education and social welfare, and to the removal of legal obstacles. The Malaysian government has ensured these factors through the establishment of Ministry of National Unity and Social Development in 1997. This was followed by the formation of the Women's Affairs Ministry in 2001 to recognise the roles and contributions of Malaysian women.
Women in Tuvalu continue to maintain a traditional Polynesian culture within a predominantly Christian society. Tuvaluan cultural identity is sustained through an individual's connection to their home island. In the traditional community system in Tuvalu, each family has its own task, or salanga, to perform for the community. The skills of a family are passed on from parents to children. The women of Tuvalu participate in the traditional music of Tuvalu and in the creation of the art of Tuvalu including using cowrie and other shells in traditional handicrafts. There are opportunities of further education and paid employment with non-government organisations (NGOs) and government enterprises, education and health agencies being the primary opportunities for Tuvaluan women.
Violence against women, particularly intimate partner violence and sexual violence, is a major public health problem and a violation of women's human rights in Pakistan. Violence against women in Pakistan is part of an issue that faces the entire region the country is situated in. Pakistan is a highly patriarchal society, and took a long time to enact laws for the protection of women. In the 2019 Women, Peace and Security Index, Pakistan ranked 164 out of 167 countries. Pakistan is worst among nine South Asian countries on access to mobile phones, financial inclusion, and discriminatory norms for women. Around 12.2 million girls, compared with 10.6 million boys, remain out of school in Pakistan, poverty compounding challenges to girls' educational opportunities. The only positive to take from the Index was Pakistan's achievement of 20 per cent representation for women in parliament and a slightly better indicator than India on bias towards sons. In 2017 there were an estimated 746 honour crimes, 24 stove burnings, 18 cases of settlement marriages. Many cases go unreported, and many of these reported cases go unprosecuted. Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) system in 2017 has been hailed as a success in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Legal experts are critical of the system, noting that ADR can delay action. Many remain concerned with patriarchal influence in a decision-making process that has traditionally disadvantaged women. In 2019, the Ombudsman for Sindh province informed the Supreme Court that out of 350 cases, action was taken in just eight cases. The largest province, Punjab, has received 116 complaints since the establishment of the office in 2013, resulted in 42 convictions, 15 acquittals, 27 withdrawals, and 24 still ongoing cases. It also reviewed 13 appeals. Four decisions were set aside, five decisions upheld, two cases were declared time-barred, while two remain ongoing. Women in Pakistan mainly encounter violence by being forced into marriage, through workplace sexual harassment, domestic violence and by honour killings.
Islamic organisations in Australia include a wide range of groups and associations run and supported by the Islamic community in Australia. Organisations include major community councils, local organisations, mosques and schools. Most Australian Muslims are Sunni, with Shia then Sufi and Ahmadiyya as minorities.
Violence against women in New Zealand is described as the kinds of violence faced by women disproportionately to men due to factors of ongoing gender inequality in society. The New Zealand government and the New Zealand justice system view efforts to prevent and deal with violence against women as a priority of New Zealand legislation and the criminal justice system. There are current domestic laws relating to the prevention and punishment of violence against women, however, despite these efforts, women in New Zealand still face high levels of violence. New Zealand was ranked as worst for Domestic Violence compared to other OECD countries with 1 in 3 women estimated to have been a victim of violence in their lifetime.
Coast Shelter is a non-profit organisation supporting homeless young people, adults and women and children experiencing domestic & family violence in the Central Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. Coast Shelter is the largest regional Specialist Homelessness Service in NSW and provides a range of accommodation and other services to those experiencing hardship in the local community.
Muslim Women's National Network Australia (MWNNA) is an association in Australia which represents a network of progressive Muslim women's organisations and individual Muslim women. MWNNA runs events and projects for Muslim women, and represents their views to media and government organisations.
Since the early 1980s, rhetoric on violence against women (VAW) has started to become acceptable in the everyday discourses of Malaysians. Independent women activists in Malaysia first started to come together to organise against VAW. Their objective was to create a violence-free society. Physical and sexual violence against women can occur in various forms such as domestic violence, sexual violence, and emotional violence. In Malaysia, government departments and NGOs such as the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development and Women's Aid Organisation provides help for women.
The NSW Women's Refuge Movement began in 1974 with the establishment of Elsie Refuge in Glebe, NSW. Other refuges were established throughout the 1970s, operating within a feminist framework and responding to the needs of women and children escaping domestic violence. At first, the refuges were developed through volunteer effort and without government funding. Gradually the government took over funding of the refuges, with the states funding the buildings and the federal government funding the running costs. The NSW Women's Refuge Movement continued to provide services to women with diverse needs and to raise awareness about domestic violence.
Bonnie Women's Refuge is a women's refuge located in south-west Sydney, established in 1974. It was the second refuge to open in Australia, following Elsie Refuge, and formed part of the original NSW Women's Refuge Movement which was established to meet the need for specialised housing and support services for women and children escaping domestic violence.The refuge, now operated as a company limited by guarantee with the name Bonnie Support Services Ltd, is registered as a public benevolent institution. It continues to provide vital support and crisis accommodation for women and children experiencing and escaping domestic violence.
