In 2017, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, issued a report clarifying that protection orders, which aim to provide immediate relief and protection to a survivor of domestic violence, are part of a State’s due diligence obligation to combat violence against women. Protection orders, which can be civil or criminal, require a perpetrator of domestic violence to leave a shared residence and to keep at a certain distance from the survivor and her children. The orders may also, temporarily, mandate maintenance and support services for survivors.
Research around the globe has shown that civil protection orders simultaneously protect and empower survivors, while encouraging survivors to access justice services. This is because survivors can initiate a civil protection order on their own terms, deciding its parameters and contents. Through this approach, the survivor will have a sense of empowerment as she takes steps to reclaim her autonomy and create space to consider her options and next steps.
Notably, over the past ten years a small but strong wave of legal reform has been washing over the Arab region, resulting in several pieces of legislation focused on improving women’s rights. Significantly, this includes standalone domestic violence legislation. As of 2019, such laws exist in six States, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Bahrain, Tunisia, and Morocco, with more underway. While each law responds to its context, all have provisions for protection orders. This measure is groundbreaking given the stigma around family violence as well as the primacy placed in the region on male privilege within the household and ensuring family cohesion at all costs.
