Sogakope (V/R), April 2, GNA - The International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA) on Saturday indicated its intention to propose a Private Member's Bill on Domestic Violence before Parliament.

The objective of the Bill is to provide a comprehensive set of provisions to specifically govern and protect the rights of children, particularly girls in the home and in existing or past intimate relationships.

FIDA laid the proposed Bill before a section of parliamentarians attending a workshop on Domestic Violence and Initiating Legislation in Parliament at Sogakope in the Volta Region.

According to FIDA, the legal basis for seeking redress for violence against women and children as enshrined in the 1992 Constitution under the criminal code is limited in remedies.

"There is limitation in the remedies that these laws provide and sometimes the punitive measures used, such as arrest and jail sentences are not favourable for promoting the welfare of the existing family structures."

Mrs Ernestina Hagan, Vice President of FIDA, said the Bill is, therefore, to provide victims of domestic violence with a broader set of remedies, including civil protection, which extends beyond mere criminal sanctioning of the perpetrator of violence.

She said that the proposed Bill, when passed into law, would regulate the family, community and society's attitude and general respect for women and children. The causes of the high incidence of violence against women are basically socio-cultural and deeply rooted in extinct traditional beliefs regarding the place and role of women in the home.

The woman is considered as the weaker and vulnerable sex, who needs to be controlled and protected by the family and society. The proposed Bill includes sections on the filing of complaints in respect of domestic violence, petition for civil protection, grant of civil protection orders and duration of protection orders, among other things.

It also seeks that the Police Service incorporates lectures on the causes and dimensions of domestic violence in its educational programme.