A UN official has urged the Thai government to accelerate the process for adopting an anti-domestic violence law to deal with increased violence against women, local press reported Wednesday.

Yakin Erturk, a UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against Women,said in Bangkok Tuesday that a law against domestic violence is needed to enable Thailand to protect individuals in the private sphere, such as children and women, from being abused without interfering with their lifestyles, as well as to provide preventive measures.

The UN official is in Bangkok for a three-day workshop and national consultation on the topic of holding governments more accountable for violence against women.

"Violence destroy family, not the prosecution. The anti-domestic violence law is not breaking up the family institution but making a stronger family since every member of a family would be protected under this law," she was quoted by Bangkok Post newspaper as saying.

The draft bill on prevention and mitigation of family violence by Thailand's Social Development and Human Security Ministry is currently under revision by the Council of State.

With main components on increased protection and assistance for victims of domestic violence and focuses more on rehabilitation of offenders than legal punishment, the draft bill is expected to be scrutinized by the Parliament early next year.

Erturk said the issue of violence against women could not be dealt with only on the surface and more attention should be paid on the root cause of the problem, that is the unequal gender relationship in the legal system institutions and education curriculum.

It will be better for the government to set up an institutional mechanism to handle women's affairs, she suggested.

Source: Xinhua