Violence against women and girls slips through ASEAN legal cracks

Activists push for regional enforcement as COVID fuels abuse 'shadow pandemic'

A shelter for abused women in Dawei, Myanmar, in 2019: ASEAN has sought to address high rates of violence against women, but activists say there is still a long way to go. © Reuters

FRANCESCA REGALADO, Nikkei staff writer

March 8, 2021 12:03 JST

TOKYO -- K, a refugee from Myanmar, was 13 years old when she came to Mae Sot, a border town in Thailand. After finding domestic work in a local household, her employer's sister forced K to work in her massage parlor, where she was raped by older men.