Diffusion of Policy to Address Violence Against Women: Implementation Evidence from Indonesia

The fourteenth Evidence Bits issue is based on the study: Hanifah, H., True, J., Mavisakalyan, A. and Flynn, A. (2025) Diffusion of Policy to Address Violence Against Women: Implementation Evidence from Indonesia. Politics & Gender.

The study analysed the diffusion of policies to address violence against women, including domestic violence and abuse (DVA), in 509 cities/regencies in Indonesia from 2004 to 2022. It found that the presence of local non-governmental organisations (NGOs) with connections to international advocacy networks and a higher number of women serving in local government are two factors likely to increase the diffusion of policy.

Policy Recommendations

Despite Indonesia’s commitment to foundational DVA conventions, subnational implementation of national policy remains uneven due to various factors including advocacy networks, female legislative representation, social and cultural norms and perceived compatibility with provincial frameworks. Adoption of international conventions on the national level does not guarantee meaningful local implementation.

The study found that advocacy on a local level through NGOs and female legislative representation positively increased the likelihood of policy diffusion. This was particularly true in cases where local NGOs were connected to transnational networks through policy mechanisms such as CEDAW.

The likelihood of progressive policy implementation is influenced by cultural and social norms as well as provincial policy norms. Conservative norms, for instance, are likely to constrain the chances of policy diffusion, while progressive ones may facilitate it. The study underlines the need for further qualitative research to examine this relationship.