‘Pandemic of violence’ against women and girls shadows COVID crisis – UN expert

Caribbean governments need to step up the fight against gender-based violence, a United Nations expert urged, amid a “shadow pandemic” of violence against women and girls alongside the coronavirus pandemic.

Isiuwa Iyahen, Programme Specialist for Economic Empowerment and Statistics at the UN Women Multi-Country Office, issued the warning at the virtual launch of the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence Campaign, organised by the Government’s Bureau of Gender Affairs.

According to Iyahen, domestic violence cases have risen to alarming levels over the past 20 months.

Referring to a recent UN Women survey in a small set of Caribbean countries excluding Barbados, domestic violence cases have clearly increased due to the loss of jobs and income avenues, due to the effects of the pandemic. Though no such widespread survey was done in Barbados, statistics seen by the UN over the same time period from Barbadian authorities have also shown a similar worrying trend.

“What is equally concerning, is that Barbados has observed a 38 per cent increase in domestic violence reports during the early stages of the 2020 lockdown of the pandemic, many of which were intimate partner violence-related,” the UN expert said.

“These alarming figures show an urgent need to tackle deeply rooted gender discriminatory norms, and address how safety and security affect Barbadian people and contributes to the culture of physical and sexual violence against women and girls in both the public and private spaces.”

Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs Cynthia Forde implored Barbadians to not only help stop the violence against women, but also against men, children, and the elderly.

Forde said society must take a proactive approach when it comes to reducing the high number of domestic violence incidents being recorded, in particular, over the course of the pandemic.

The minister said: “This year’s UN theme for the 16 days of Activism ‘Orange the World: End violence against woman now!’ reinforces the need for governments all over the world to act decisively and with haste to address this surge more frontally.

“While this theme emphasises the need to protect women, the voices of men, boys, and the elderly must also be a part of this conversation. Statistics have proven that women are disproportionately by domestic violence, we, however, must still cognizant of the fact that domestic violence is far-reaching and can occur between members of particular households, so the impact is on our boys and our young girls and the [elderly] as mentioned before.”

Forde added it was the responsibility of all citizens to come to the table and help root out the issue seen within communities, workplaces, and elsewhere if lasting changes in the fight against violence are ever to be seen

“I emphasise we can’t continue to view men mainly as perpetrators, but as part of the solution. Men therefore must be fully engaged in our efforts,” said the minister.

“We are each brother’s keeper, I encourage every one of you to become involved and join the fight against gender-based violence in all forms, and to say with conviction, that there is no room for gender-based violence in any society, with the emphasis now particularly in our homes.” (SB)