Jakarta, Indonesia — An emotionally and physically abusive 11-year marriage led Rani Miranti to join a fight club that trained her in martial arts, allowing her to confront violence.
Miranti is one of the growing Indonesian women attending self-defense classes, as gender-based violence remains a challenge in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority country.
“Government protection usually comes after the violence has happened, although we never know when it will happen,” said this 38-year-old single mother of three. “Unfortunately, when it happens suddenly, no one can help. Therefore, we need to have self-defense capabilities.”
The National Commission on Violence against Women, known as Komnas Perempuan, recorded 289,111 cases last year, a decrease of about 12% from 339,782 in 2022, a year in which a law on sexual violence was enacted.
However, the commission suggested that the latest data represents “the tip of the iceberg” on gender-based violence. The actual number of cases is suspected to be significantly higher, it said in the 2023 Komnas Perempuan annual report released in March.
A large number of cases go unreported due to several factors: victims’ limited access to complaint services, a weak case documentation system and a high level of social stigma towards victims of violence, the report states.
Indonesia’s Parliament passed a far-reaching law in 2022 that establishes punishments for sexual violence and guarantees provisions, restitution or other remedies for victims and survivors.
The law was passed a week after an Indonesian high court sentenced a Islamic boarding school director until death for raping at least 13 students over five years and getting some of them pregnant. The girls were aged between 11 and 14 and had been raped over several years, sparking a public outcry over why he was not caught sooner.
In July, Indonesia’s electoral commission fired its president after finding him guilty of sexual assault following a report from an employee. It was the latest in a series of cases of violence against women in the country, in a vast archipelago with more than 277 million people.
As cases rose, more Indonesian women and girls who feared physical violence turned to alternative ways to ensure their safety, including self-defense classes and clubs.
For Miranti, whose husband repeatedly assaulted and physically abused her, Muay Thai is the most suitable self-defense as it helps her acquire more skills, self-confidence and prevention techniques.
Wearing a red hijab and boxing gloves, the teacher at an Islamic primary school in Jakarta demonstrated her skill by hitting a heavy bag and kicking her training partner. Is it part of your training routine in a Mixed martial arts course in East Jakarta, where he enrolled almost two years ago, after deciding to leave his abusive marriage in 2018.
Originating in Thailand, Muay Thai is a form of kickboxing that includes knees and elbows, kicks and punches.
“Now, I have a way. … I have the ability to fight back,” Miranti said. “But even more importantly, I learned to avoid situations by being more aware of my surroundings.”
Miranti’s trainer, Rahimatul Hasanah, said she was impressed by the growing demand from women wanting to learn martial arts, especially in private training, as female Muay Thai instructors are difficult to find.
“Many will not feel comfortable being trained by male instructors or will need private lessons at home,” she added.
She said most of the women who have attended her self-defense classes are shy, and some have suffered abuse in the past.
“Learning physical self-defense not only gives you the tools to control your reactions to negative situations, but it can also build confidence for mental defense,” Hasanah said.
Her husband, professional MMA fighter Rizal Zulmi, said the growing trend of women learning martial arts shows abusers and criminals that “not all women are easy prey.”
The martial arts coaching duo opened BKT Fight Club three years ago with around 40 students.
“Combat sports have recently become popular among women,” said Zulmi, who has won at least 30 medals at regional, national and international levels. “They need this type of martial arts for self-defense amid the rampant crimes that have happened to women.”
Rangi Wirantika Sudrajat, another Indonesian who attended MMA classes, said physical training in martial arts contributed most to her roles as a general practitioner at Doctors Without Borders, widely known as Doctors Without Borders.
The 31-year-old doctor has been deployed to several refugee camps in Pakistan, Yemen, South Sudan, Bangladesh and Sierra Leone. She said that martial arts not only increases your self-confidence and physical strength, but also serves to manage stress.
“I can channel all my repressed emotions, anger and sadness in a healthy way through Muay Thai,” she said.
Andy Yentriyani, chief commissioner of the National Commission on Violence against Women, welcomed the phenomenon of more women participating in self-defense classes.
“Of course this is very important, because sometimes there are many victims who are so shocked that they cannot have any response to what happened to them,” Yentriyani said. “And by the time they realize it, it may be too late or it may be a very long process.”
Among the types of violence recorded that occurred in private spaces are attempted rape, marital rape, forced abortion and incest. Most of the victims were students aged between 18 and 24, while most of the reported perpetrators were their former or current male partners.
Almost all victims were younger and had a lower level of education than their perpetrators, indicating that violence against women often involved an imbalance of powerYentriyani said.
She said more people reported sexual harassment in 2023, a year after the sexual violence law was enacted. Her commission received nearly 800 reports of online and physical sexual harassment last year, about four times the 200 reported rape cases it received in the same period.
“Many in our society still consider cases of sexual violence to be shameful and embarrassing for female victims,” said Yentriyani, and many families then decide not to report it. “We still frequently see situations where victims are silenced, including violence against wives.”
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This story corrects the first name of Rahimatul Hasanah. It is Rahimatul, not Himattul.
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Achmad Ibrahim, Andi Jatmiko and Fadlan Syam contributed to this report.
This story originally appeared on ABCNews.go.com read the full story
