Violence against women politicians in Asia

In Asia, violence against women politicians is rising alarmingly

Some 60 per cent of women parliamentarians have been targeted by hate speech, disinformation or image-based abuse

Violence against female politicians in Asia

According to the NGO Front Line Defenders, women have always been integral to protest movements against oppression in South Asia. They are often more courageous and outspoken than men. In Pakistan, one woman leading the charge is Sammi Deen Baloch (Photo)

April 2025: A comprehensive study published in March 2025 has revealed an alarming rise in sexism, harassment and violence against women in parliaments across the Asia-Pacific region. Some 60 per cent of women parliamentarians surveyed for the study have been targeted by hate speech, disinformation, image-based abuse, or unwanted disclosure of personal data (doxing) online. More than a third of reported cases of intimidation and threats occurred online.

The study’s authors have also discovered that 76 per cent of women parliamentarians and 63 per cent of parliamentary staff have experienced psychological violence. Sexual violence is also prevalent, with 25 per cent of women parliamentarians and 36 per cent of parliamentary staff reporting such incidents. Economic violence or damage to women’s belongings has affected 24 per cent of women parliamentarians and 27 per cent of parliamentary staff, while physical violence was reported by 13 per cent and five per cent respectively.

The study, ‘Sexism, harassment and violence against women in parliaments in the Asia-Pacific region’ is based on confidential interviews with 150 women parliamentarians and parliamentary staff from 33 countries. It was published by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU)*, in partnership with the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA)* and the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA)*.

Following the publication of the study, Martin Chungong, IPU Secretary General said: "Violence and sexism against women in politics is a direct assault on democracy itself. The courageous women who have come forward to denounce abuse deserve our unwavering support. Parliaments must be sanctuaries for healthy debate and law-making. We have the tools to support them. It is our responsibility to foster a political climate where women can thrive without the shadow of violence."

Online abuse of women is increasing

Online gender-based violence is on the rise compared to rates reported in previous IPU studies. Rates of violence, particularly psychological and sexual violence, are disproportionately higher among specific groups of women parliamentarians than for participants as a whole. This includes women under 40 (plus 17 percentage points for psychological violence and plus 11 percentage points for sexual violence), women from minority backgrounds (plus 18 percentage points and an increase of six percentage points, respectively), and unmarried women.

Women parliamentarians belonging to their country’s political opposition report rates of psychological violence that are 24 percentage points higher than for women parliamentarians as a whole and rates of sexual violence that are 18 percentage points higher.

Among women parliamentary staff, the alarming rates of sexual and psychological harassment perpetrated overwhelmingly by male parliamentary staff and, to a lesser extent, by parliamentarians raise questions about the nature of parliament as a workplace.

Since the IPU’s first study on sexism, harassment and violence against women in parliaments, several parliaments in the region have begun taking steps to prevent and respond to such actions, including by setting up mechanisms for confidential reporting and handling complaints. This is the case, for example, in Fiji, India, the Maldives, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka and Thailand. While these measures currently primarily protect parliamentary staff from harassment by peers, the examples of the parliaments of Australia and New Zealand demonstrate the importance of implementing comprehensive reforms to ensure that parliamentarians and all those working in parliament are fully involved in and covered by such measures.

Definition of violence in politics

In politics, both women and men can be exposed to violence – whether during or outside of election periods, online or offline. These acts of violence may be gender-based, targeting women because of their sex.

Violence against women in politics is defined as “any act of gender-based violence, or threat of such acts, that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering and is directed against a woman in politics because she is a woman, or affects women disproportionately”. Such violence is aimed at women to dissuade them from engaging in political activities and exercising their fundamental rights, and to control, restrict and prevent their participation in political life as individuals or as a group.

It prevents women “from exercising and realising their political rights, whether in public or private spaces, including the right to vote and hold public office, to vote in secret and to freely campaign, to associate and assemble, and to enjoy freedom of opinion and expression”.

Low participation of women in Asian politics

The Asia-Pacific region ranks last but one in the world in terms of women’s participation in parliament. According to Parline data, as of 1 October 2024,14 women account for 21.5 per cent of parliamentarians in Asia, and 19.4 per cent in the Pacific. Except for Australia, New Zealand, Timor-Leste and Vietnam, which have reached or surpassed 30 per cent of women in parliament, countries in the region are struggling to achieve parity.

Violence against and abuse of women in Asia

Statistics by UN Women*

Compiled in 2021

• In Southeast Asia 33 per cent of partnered women aged 15-49 will experience physical and/or sexual violence from a current or former husband or male partner at least once in their lifetime. 17 per cent of partnered women subjected to physical and/or sexual violence from a current or former partner in the past 12 months.

• In many countries across Asia and the Pacific, the proportion of women who report having experienced physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner in their lifetime is substantially higher than the global average of 27 per cent; at 35 per cent in India, 38 per cent in Timor Leste, and 50 per cent and over in Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Bangladesh.

• In 2021, 28 per cent of women in Timor-Leste, 29 per cent of women in Vanuatu, 31 per cent of women in PNG and 23 per cent of women in Bangladesh experienced intimate partner violence. This is substantially above the global average of 13 per cent.

• In Asia and the Pacific, as many as 75 per cent of women have experienced sexual harassment.

• Some 20,000 women were killed by intimate partners or family members in Asia in 2017, alone. Although the percentage of women and girls intentionally killed by their intimate partners or family members is greatest in Africa, Asia has the largest number of women and girls killed overall.

• In China, 38 per cent of women experienced psychological violence by their own partners.

• Statistics on sexual violence against women in the Western-Pacific Region, show some of the highest prevalence rates worldwide. In Nauru, over 43 per cent of women fell victim to sexual violence in their lifetime, by a perpetrator who was not their current or former partner, while 28 per cent of women in Vanuatu stated that their first sexual experience was forced.

• In East Asia and the Pacific, women, and girls make up 68 percent of trafficked persons. About half of the detected victims in the region are women.

• The majority of detected victims in East Asia and the Pacific continue to be trafficked for sexual exploitation, accounting for 64 per cent of detected cases.

• In Indonesia, 49 per cent of girls under 14 have undergone some form of female genital mutilation, although it is outlawed.

• Some 44 per cent of all child brides are from South Asia. Globally 650 million girls and women alive today were married before the age of 18.

• Violence against women in the Asia-Pacific region is also perpetrated through sexual and street harassment, menstruation stigmatisation and lack of access to hygiene products, dowry-related violence, forced marriage, digital harassment and cyberviolence, marital rape and lack of access to justice and survivor-centred support systems.

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* Sources

UN Women

UN Women is the United Nations entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women. A global champion for women and girls, UN Women was established to accelerate progress in meeting their needs worldwide.

IPU

The IPU is the global organization of national parliaments. It was founded in 1889 as the first multilateral political organization in the world, encouraging cooperation and dialogue between all nations. Today, the IPU comprises 181 national Member Parliaments and 15 regional parliamentary bodies.

CPA

The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) is an international community of 180 Parliaments at national, state, provincial and territorial levels working together to deepen the Commonwealth’s commitment to the highest standards of democratic governance. The Commonwealth Women Parliamentarians (CWP) network within the CPA represents over 6,000 Women Parliamentarians and campaigns to increase the number of women elected representatives in the Legislatures and helps parliaments to become gender-sensitive institutions.

AIPA

The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) is the sole parliamentary organisation associated with the Association of the Southeast Asia Nations (ASEAN). AIPA currently consists of 10 Member Parliaments from ASEAN Member States and 25 Observer Parliaments from national and supranational parliaments around the globe. Established in 1977, AIPA aims to promote inter-parliamentary cooperation among ASEAN Member States, other parliaments and parliamentary organisations and to facilitate the achievement of the goals of ASEAN.

Further reading Violence against female politicians in Europe | World Mayor 2025 |

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