The economic dimensions of domestic violence in Timor-Leste
The perception that all women are economically dependent on their husbands is effecting how perpetrators of domestic violence are held responsible in Timor-Leste. Cases of this nature are often treated lightly on the basis that survivors of intimate partner violence are reliant on their husband’s income and would suffer further if he were sent to prison.
From interviews conducted with women that had experienced severe forms of abuse, over half of those who had left their husbands found that their economic situation had actually improved.
The economic dimensions of domestic violence must be further researched, and gender-based misconceptions challenged.