AbstractsWomens Studies

Violence against women is serious violation of women’s human rights. It has been taken up on the agenda of international society as a social problem for several decades. However, it is still a serious problem. One form of violence against women is domestic violence. It occurs regardless of age, social class, occupation, education, race or culture. Despite that, domestic violence had been regarded as a private matter and ignored by society until the late 1970’s. Japan was not an exception. Norway is well-known as one of the most gender equal countries in the world. However, domestic violence exists in Norway too. The Norwegian government states that to fight against domestic violence is a public responsibility. As this word shows, the Norwegian government has implemented many measures for domestic violence. The Act on the Prevention of Spousal Violence and the Protection of Victims was enacted in 2001. It is civil law and has no penalty clause except violation of a protection order. By this Act, the Japanese government succeeded in making domestic violence visible. As of May 2012, it was amended twice; in 2004 and 2007. The third amendment has been hoped. How has the Act worked? Were the measures effective? By comparing the measures for domestic violence in Japan and Norway, I will try to find what kinds of measures victims and batterers need.