Editor’s Note: This post was previously published by UN Women on June 25, 2020.
As billions of people are still under COVID-19 lockdown, the shadow pandemic of violence against women has been growing within homes around the world.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, violence against women and girls, a gross human rights violation, impacted one in three women worldwide. Recent data from multiple countries already show a spike in reporting of domestic violence through helplines since COVID-19 lockdowns started. As countries now contend with economic crisis, service shortfalls and high levels of stress, many women find themselves trapped in isolation with abusive partners, without access to information and support services that they need.
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