Image
COVID EU

Collateral issues in times of COVID-19: Child abuse, domestic violence, and femicide

Executive Summary

In this article, Dr.'s Lund, Manica, and Manica conduct a literature review on domestic violence (DV) and intimate partner violence (IPV) during the COVID-19 pandemic. The authors explore the role that COVID-19 has had on DV and IPV in various countries, such as Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico, among others. They also present recommendations for future research and assert that prevention measures for violence against women and children must adapt to a post-pandemic reality.

Author(s)

Rafael Guerra Lund
Scheila Manica
Giselle Manica

Recommendations for Interventions

1. "Payment of financial benefits and social protection for all women and children at risk of vulnerability including migrants with illegal or uncertain residency status."

2. "Provision of emergency housing to those who are homeless, moratorium on evictions, and assistance with rent or mortgage repayments."

3. "Divulgation of health promotion advice on prevention of COVID19 with language translation."

4. "Maintenance and extension of personcentered services to address needs associated with mental health, physical and sexual violence."

5. "Specifically train mental health professionals to support individuals in their specific necessities during the pandemic, by providing first‐line psychological support, enquiring about needs and concerns, validating individuals' experiences and feelings, enhancing safety, and referring these individuals to relevant support services."

6. "The development and divulgation of prevention policies and school-based strategies to prevent child sexual abuse focused on improving children's understanding of their bodies, appropriate and inappropriate touch, also teaching them who they could address if they had concerns about someone's behavior."

(Lund, Manica, & Manica, 2020, pg. 66-67)

 

In times of outbreak of the pandemic COVID-19 that has required quarantine and social isolation, for many women and children, the threat seems greater where they should be safer: in their own homes. The pandemic has increased the abuse in almost all countries; however, even before that, a third of women worldwide experienced some form of violence.

 

 


 

Interested in joining
our team? Questions
or comments?

Connect with us:  
twitter @femicidewatch

Imprint link icon & 
Privacy Policy link icon

Email us: editors (at)
femicide-watch.org

UNSA Global Network
UNSA Vienna

powered by
enlightenment GmbH

UNSA Vienna

UNSA GN

enlightenment logo