Conference Proceedings of rd 3 World Conference on Women’s Studies 2017 4 – 6, May 2017 Colombo, Sri Lanka Committee of the WCWS- 2017 The International Institute of Knowledge Management (TIIKM) Tel: +94(0) 11 3098521 [email protected] Disclaimer The responsibility for opinions expressed, in articles, studies and other contributions in this publication rests solely with their authors, and this publication does not constitute an endorsement by the WCWS or TIIKM of the opinions so expressed in them. Official website of the conference www.womenstudies.co Conference Proceedings of 3rd World Conference on Women’s Studies 2017 Edited by Prof. Diana J. Fox and Others ISSN 2424-6743 online Copyright @ 2017 TIIKM All rights are reserved according to the code of intellectual property act of Sri Lanka, 2003 Published by the International Institute of Knowledge Management (TIIKM), No; 531/18, Kotte Road, Pitakotte, 10100, Sri Lanka Tel: +94(0) 11 3098521 Fax: +94(0) 11 2848654 ii Hosted By: Bridgewater State University, USA Academic Partners: Nepal Center for Contemporary Research, Nepal Centre of Excellence for Women’s Studies, University of Karachi, Pakistan Graduate Degree Program in Christian Studies, Rikkyo University, Japan International Center for Research on Women Organized By: The International Institute of Knowledge Management (TIIKM) WCWS- 2017 Committee PROF. DIANA J. FOX (Chairperson, WCWS 2017) Professor and Chairperson, Department of Anthropology, Journal of International Women’s Studies, Bridgewater State University, USA PROF. PATRICIA MOHAMMED (Keynote Speaker, WCWS 2017) Professor of Gender and Cultural Studies, Chair, School for Graduate Studies and Research at the University of the West Indies, Trinidad, West Indies DR. RAVI VERMA (Keynote Speaker, WCWS 2017) Regional Director, International Centre for Research on Women's (ICRW), India MS. NEELA MARIKKAR (Keynote Speaker, WCWS 2017) Chairperson/Managing Director, Grant Group MR. ISANKA. P. GAMAGE (Conference Convener, WCWS 2017) The International Institute of Knowledge Management MR. OSHADEE WITHANAWASAM (Conference Publication Chair, WCWS 2017) The International Institute of Knowledge Management iii MS. SANDALI GURUSINGHE (Conference Coordinator, WCWS 2017) The International Institute of Knowledge Management EditorialEditorial BoardBoard- ICOM– WCWS 2013 2017 Editor in Chief Prof. Diana J. Fox, Professor and Chairperson, Department of Anthropology, Journal of International Women’s Studies, Bridgewater State University, USA The Editorial Board is not responsible for the content of any abstract. Scientific Committee – WCWS 2017 Prof. Denise Lee Spitzer, University of Ottawa Canada, Canada Dr. Bishnu Raj Upreti, Nepal Center for Contemporary Research, Nepal Dr. Julaikha Bente Hossain, Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand Prof. Kyoko Kusakabe, Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand Dr. Sharifah Zahhura Syed Abdullah, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Malaysia Assoc. Prof. Sharon A Bong, Monash University Malaysia, Malaysia Prof. Escaja Tina, The University of Vermont, USA Prof. Grace Wamue-Ngare, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Kenyatta University, Kenya Dr. Shagugta Nasreen, International Islamic University, Islamabad, Pakistan Assoc. Prof. Beth Alpert Nakhai, The Arizona Center for Judaic Studies, The University of Arizona, USA Assoc. Prof. Noraida Endut, Centre for Research on Women and Gender (KANITA), Malaysia Prof. Denise Lee Spitzer, University of Ottawa,, Canada Dr. Lai Suat Yan, University of Malaya,, Malaysia Assoc. Prof. Mira Sonntag, Rikkyo University, Japan Prof. UI Shiori, Rikkyo University, Japan Prof. Andrea Martinez, University of Ottawa, Canada Prof. Escaja Tina, The University of Vermont, USA Asst. Prof. Christine Quinan, Utrecht University, Netherlands Dr. Pacificah Florence Okemwa, Kenyatta University, Kenya Prof. Ameer Sultana, Panjab University, India Asst. Prof. Teresita G. Villamor Barrameda, University of the Philippines, Philippines Dr. Moly Kuruvilla, University of Calicut, India Prof. Karen Tice, University of Kentucky, USA iv Dr. Mini Sukumar, University of Calicut, India Prof. Donna Hughes, University of Rhode Island, USA Prof. Margo Okazawa, Hamilton College, USA Prof. Manvinder Kaur, Panjab University, India Dr. Archana Bhatia, Head & Dean, DAV Centenary College India Mr. Annal Tandukar, Nepal Center for Contemporary Research, Nepal Mr. G.P. Acharya, Nepal Center for Contemporary Research, Nepal v MESSAGE FROM THE HOSTING PARTNER, WCWS 2017 Bridgewater State University (BSU) is honored to be a hosting partner of the 2017 Women’s Studies Conference. It is appropriate that BSU serve as a hosting partner since our mission and values as a university align with the goals of TIIKM in the advancement and promotion of the democratization of knowledge. Since BSU’s founding in 1840, our university has been committed to empower individuals and in still our university community and partners with the desire to advance the public good through a dynamic academic environment. We encourage our faculty and students to become leaders in their fields. As part of this effort, we are deeply committed to the ideals of global citizenship: we encourage our community to make decisions based on a view of the world as an increasingly complex web of interconnections and interdependencies; to see ourselves as part of a world community, taking on active roles to nurture a more inclusive and secure world. These objective cannot occur without women’s equality. It is in this spirit that Bridgewater State University is a proud hosting partner of TIIKM’s Third Women’s Studies World Conference. vi MESSAGE FROM THE CONFERENCE CHAIR, WCWS 2017 College of Humanities and Social Sciences Anthropology Department Greetings and welcome to Colombo, Sri Lanka and to the Third World Conference on Women’s Studies. It is with great pleasure that I serve as conference chair for the second time for the Third World Conference on Women’s Studies, organized by The International Institute of Knowledge Management (TIIKM). Bridgewater State University, my home institution, is honored to be a hosting partner. I attended the second conference in Colombo in 2016 for which I also served as conference chair. The 2017 conference is benefitting from observations and feedback from that 2016 conference, and we are thrilled to offer three new networking and organizing opportunities: 1) A publishing workshop, co-hosted by myself and Professor Patricia Mohammed from the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine campus in Trinidad and Tobago; 2) A graduate student workshop exploring opportunities in the field and offering motivational content to pursue a career that is gender/sexuality focused, which I will also co-host with my colleague from Bridgewater State University, Professor Madhavi Venkatesanas; and 3) A Roundtable discussion that will focus on strategies for change, including levels and forms of change as well as insights about forming partnerships across our differences. Panel presentation times are also lengthened this year, along with somewhat longer opportunities for Q&A. These modifications should increase opportunities for networking and thinking through activism—after all, Women’s Studies, like feminism, must be concerned with the relationship between our scholarship and improving the human condition. vii As with last year, this year we also look forward to a stimulating and provocative conference, one that challenges our ideas, builds our connections with one another, and invigorates us in our work. The theme, "Building Resilience: Dialogue, Collaboration and Partnerships across Our Differences" promises to help us achieve these goals by highlighting the current challenges we face in building local, regional and global women’s movements: with all their variety and uniquenesses, there are nonetheless connecting threads. As the late Moroccan sociologist and feminist, Fatima Mernissa most brilliantly asserted in 1988: ―we must develop our listening capacity, to be sure that we hear everything, even those things that don’t fit into our theories and pretty constructs. And, above all, to avoid positing a `return to the past’ as an alternative for women.‖ By opening ourselves to really listen, particularly through discomfort and disagreement, we lend ourselves to new ideas and approaches, to revisiting those we have discarded too abruptly, and ultimately to achieving some measure of transformation. I want to thank TIIKM on behalf of all conference participants, for organizing the conference, juggling all the logistical details including the hotel, meals, program, and other features of the conference planning. This group of brilliant, energetic, and hopeful conference organizers continue to add to the human story through their innovative conference themes, tackling the most difficult, persistent, and pressing topics of our times, bringing scholars, activists, policymakers, educators, artists and others together from across the region and the planet. Please take every opportunity during the conference to engage with one another, to discuss your ideas for research, writing and practice. I also hope that you take some time to explore Colombo in all its vibrancy. Welcome to the conference! Conference Chair Diana J. Fox Professor and Chairperson Anthropology Department Bridgewater State University viii Table of Contents Page No 1. Intimate Partner Violence: Exploring Links with Men’s 01 Childhood Gender Inequality and Violence Experiences Bigi Thomas 2. Crime against Women during Armed Conflict’s