Activist responses, justice and shelters (refuges) across the world

Abstract

This chapter discusses activist responses across the world to domestic violence and abuse, and the development of shelters (refuges) in other countries. It starts with a look at international initiatives to work with the police, for example, the Special Cell for Women and Children in India, the Canadian London, Ontario, initiatives and women’s police stations in Brazil. It debates whether shelters / refuges are a Western concept, and the necessity for context-specific projects in countries of the Global South. It continues by looking at the pioneering work of the World Conference of Shelters and the Global Network of Women’s Shelters. The chapter concludes with a tribute to the women’s activists on domestic violence who now span the globe and a poem honouring Middle Eastern activists and their work on ‘honour’-based violence.