ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how certain ways of thinking about men and women's bodies, sexualities, and gender roles that inform forms of gender violence are common throughout the Pacific Basin. It also shows that despite the fact that most countries of the Pacific Basin have signed international accords recognizing gender violence as human rights abuses and have altered local laws to criminalize such acts, incidences of gender violence have not declined due to the persistence of discriminatory ideologies, inequality, and weak institutional responses. During Guatemala's civil war, particularly gruesome forms of gender violence were carried out by the military on indigenous women who were forced to cook, wash, and perform sexual services for the soldiers occupying their communities. The honor/shame complex is also one of the main cultural concepts that shapes gender violence in India. Likewise, reports of violence against women (VAW) in India increased by 134 per cent between 2003 and 2013.
