Becoming a Victim of Domestic Abuse and Partner’s Lack of Knowledge of Marriage Laws

Domestic abuse with husbands as the offenders and wives as the victims shows that there is an imbalance of rights and obligations in living a married life, despite the rights and obligations of husband and wife are strictly regulated in Law Number 1 of 1974 concerning Marriage. As the offender of domestic abuse, a husband cannot escape from criminal sanctions that have been determined in Law Number 23 of 2004 concerning the Elimination of Domestic abuse. In response to domestic abuse, the author argued, using feminist research and a qualitative methodology, that women (wives) who killed their partners were also victims. Therefore, they shouldn't be imprisoned. This article discusses the public perspective of women who have homicidal as a response to domestic abuse by looking at the motivations behind their actions, rehabilitation tactics, forgiveness policies and protection programs for these women. After careful consideration, the author concludes that the Indonesian government should enact legislation to regulate alternative intervention programs for victims of domestic abuse who have killed their abusers.