Author(s): Aria Zurnetti
Violence against Women is a form of violence that occurs based on gender differences, whereas domestic violence is a form of violence that occurs in the family/household environment. Many women and children are victims of violence around the world and Indonesia is no exempt to this sad reality. West Sumatra, home to the Minangkabau ethnic and its adat (custom) ranks second in term of domestic violence in Indonesia. This paper aims at addressing the following questions: what are the causes of domestic violence against women in West Sumatra? And how can customary criminal law and local wisdom best deal with phenomenon in West Sumatra? This study uses a socio-legal approach with descriptive nature using primary and secondary data. The study reveals that the causes of domestic violence against women in West Sumatra come from the victims themselves. The study also shows policies that have been carried out so far rely on penal and non-penal approaches through the criminal justice system, customary criminal law and local wisdom. The restorative justice approach is also used through deliberation and consensus based on the values in Minangkabau customary law. Marriage in the Minangkabau community rests in the hands of niniak mamak (clan leaders), settlement through the principle of musyarawah (consensus) as a principle in customary criminal law carried out first through deliberation in the family, then, at the level of clan leaders known as Kerapatan adat salingka nagari.