Suherdjoko, Semarang – More than 50 female journalists forged the Semarang Female Journalists Coalition on Wednesday, to focus on gender inequality and the promotion of women's rights.
Speaking on the sidelines of the coalition's declaration, chairwoman Valentina Estiningsih said female journalists would have better communication, information, dialogue and more power united under a coalition.
"We want to voice what women have to say through the media, while also improving our journalistic skills," Valentina, who is also a Suara Merdeka daily journalist, said.
Endang Istanti, a journalist from Metro TV who also attended the declaration, said: "Lots of women's issues need to be raised. We are trying to advocate women's rights and keep our work sustainable."
Following the declaration of the newly formed group, the coalition held a discussion with Central Java Deputy Governor Rustrinigsih, Hastaning Sakti, a psychologist from Diponegoro University in Semarang, and Evarisan, a coordinator from the Semarang Legal Resource Center for Gender Justice and Human Rights (LRC-KJHAM). All of the speakers were female.
Evarisan said there were 385 reported cases of violence against women in Central Java in 2008. Of the 385 cases, Evarisan explained, 117 were of rape, 104 were domestic violence, 54 were for sexual harassment and obscenity, six included violence within a relationship, 51 involved prostitute exploitation, 39 involved migrant worker exploitation and 14 involved trafficking.
One of two domestic violence victims attending the discussion said she still suffered domestic violence even though she was divorced.
"I'm a woman who was divorced by my husband. After (my) divorce, my ex-husband kept trying to possess all our joint property," said the 40-year-old mother.
"But I manage to survive and live in the house with my children because of my determination and the help of LRC-KJHAM, which has allowed me to get through it," she added.
Deputy Governor Rustriningsih said she often received reports of violence against women when she was the Kebumen regent. "In facing these cases, women also suffer the burden of social stigma from their families, neighbors and community leaders," she said.
In several cases, "inappropriate" opinions from community leaders can overburden female victims, she said. "Therefore, I provide assistance for women who experience domestic violence, when I learn of it," she said.
Rustriningsih also encouraged women not to take the Javanese term "sumeleh", meaning acceptance, for granted, and to be economically independent of their husbands. "We women, must rise. Women must have full consciousness of their self-respect and value," she said.
Hastaning said women often accepted being criticized for lacking comprehension, an inability to please their husbands, rejecting their husband's wants and having a lower social status.
"Whatever the reason is, no one has the right to inflict violence on their spouse. Everyone has fundamental human rights that must be protected," she said.
She said domestic violence could result from an unbalanced relationship and an incorrect interpretation of love, which she said were "influenced by the dominant gender ideology that subjugates women".