Ghar ki Baat

Lockdowns have proved effective measures for battling the pandemic. But, with families confined to the four walls of home due to the lockdown, several countries have reported a sudden spurt in incidents of domestic violence. In the United Kingdom, a helpline for victims of domestic abuse has reportedly received 25% more calls than normal times. France, in the first week of lockdown reported a more than 30% rise in domestic violence cases. In Brazil, it has been between 40% and 50%. Australia is worst; it reported a 75% increase in internet searches relating to support for domestic violence victims. Germany, Italy, China, Spain etc have also an alarming rise in abuse. India too is not lagging behind, with the National Commission for Women (NCW), which receives complaints of domestic violence from across the country, recording more than two-fold rise in gender-based violence in the national Coronavirus lockdown period. Job loss, salary cuts, an uncertain future arising out of the lockdown has everyone on edge. The violence of domestic abuse is worse in the poorer section of the society. Impoverished women can often be made more vulnerable to domestic violence, as they have no place to escape to. Unemployment is on the rise due to the lockdown, causing a lot of uncertainty, stress and frustration among many people. This has not only worried government agencies, rights groups and organizations, but also the United Nations. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has recently said that over the past weeks, as the economic and social pressures and fear have grown, the world has seen a horrifying surge in domestic violence. In some countries, he said, the number of women calling support services has doubled. “Violence is not confined to the battlefield,” said Guterres in a statement and video released in multiple languages, days after his call for a worldwide ceasefire in the wake of the outbreak. “For many women and girls, the threat looms largest where they should be safest – in their own homes,” he said. Describing the rise in domestic violence as “horrifying,” he urged all governments “to make the prevention and redress of violence against women a key part of their national response plans for COVID-19.” Interestingly, a few countries have also reported an increase in men facing domestic abuse during the lockdown, the reasons being the same. The Men’s Advice Line, a UK-based organization for male victims of domestic abuse, has registered an increase in calls of 16.6% in the same week, while the advice line website registered an increase in traffic of 42%.