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Stepping Out of the Shadows: Same-Sex Domestic Violence in Sri Lanka is a publication of EQUAL GROUND, Sri Lanka and may be reproduced without permission for educational use only. No reproductions may be sold for profit. Excerpted or adapted material from this publication must include full citation of the source. A written request must be submitted to EQUAL GROUND to reproduce for other purposes.

This booklet is an admirable effort by EQUAL GROUND to highlight and address a hidden dimension of a larger social issue - that of domestic violence within same-sex relationships. However, it ends up being an important educational tool for all, because it reveals that domestic violence among those constituting the”other” is no different from violence among the “normal”. The human condition is, after all, universal. The irony, however, is that the law of the land does not permit the “other” in this context to even exist, let alone provide solutions to their social issues.

We, who feel superior because our social identities constitute the mainstream, either intentionally dismiss or fail to acknowledge the harsh realities of exclusion and marginalization of those who have chosen to be different from us, and indeed the issues facing such groups. We do know that the reason for that state of affairs is the hopeless arrogance of the “normal”. That arrogance has excluded laws, public policy and even social activism at times from focusing on and addressing serious, sometimes life-threatening, problems of fellow members of society.

In 2005 the Parliament of Sri Lanka, after much controversy, enacted the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act, No. 34 of 2005. It was certainly a groundbreaking piece of legislation. It made what was essentially viewed as a private matter a public issue. The legislation was a result of years of discussion, debate and indeed lobbying by women’s groups. Within traditional domestic settings a large proportion of victims/survivors of domestic violence happen to be women.

The public debate in the media and elsewhere focused on violence within the traditional family and extended family. The issue of violence within alternative domestic settings was not referred to, except by feminist groups. Perhaps the silence was a tactic on the part of some. Given the opposition by some Members of Parliament to the Bill on grounds of local cultural values, the possibility of getting the Bill enacted even with regard to traditional family units proved to be a challenge.