COVID-19 lockdowns are dishing out society’s dirty laundry. From where our priorities lie as we ransack stores to stock-up on supplies to the domestic abuse and now even forced marriages.
It can be hard being cooped up with your family for a long time. Add the stress from unemployment, pay-cuts and uncertainty to the mix with the global Coronavirus pandemic and there’s sure to be a fight or two.
Stress from the pandemic and lockdown has led the divorce rate to peak in China. While in Japan people were talking about filing for divorce under the trend ‘Corona divorce‘.
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While the divorce rate has gone up as people are spending so much time together in lockdown elsewhere, some communities have had less peaceful outcomes to disputes. From domestic violence to forced marriage, we’re seeing the worse outcomes of familial crises.
In April the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres reported a ‘horrifying global surge’ in domestic violence during the lockdown and quarantine.
“We know lockdowns and quarantines are essential to suppressing COVID-19. But they can trap women with abusive partners.”
Peace is not just the absence of war. Many women under lockdown for #COVID19 face violence where they should be safest: in their own homes.
Today I appeal for peace in homes around the world.
I urge all governments to put women’s safety first as they respond to the pandemic. pic.twitter.com/PjDUTrMb9v
— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) April 6, 2020
Violence against women is a global crisis, and even countries like Britain and even seeing ‘Coronavirus murders’ as domestic violence escalates amid the COVID-19 lockdown. World Health Organisation (WHO) regional director for Europe, Hans Kluge says there’s been a 60% increase in emergency calls by domestic abuse victims in April 2020.
“Member Sates are reporting up to a 60% increase in emergency calls by women subjected to violence by their intimate partners in April this year, compared to last”.
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However, communities with a history of honor-based violence might be facing another issue altogether. Aside from domestic abuse, such communities are witnessing a rise in forced marriages. Forced marriages are an unfortunate phenomenon in the South Asian community and Middle-Eastern cultures.
Forced Marriages Amid the COVID-19 Lockdown
Perhaps its a combination of factors such as resentment from being cooped up at home, economic insecurity amid the COVID-19 lockdown, history of domestic abuse that is causing controlling patriarchs in the family, fathers or brothers, to forcefully marry of their dependents
Karma Nirvana is an organization specifically devoted to working against honor-based violence and forced marriages.
Karma Nirvana reported 47 forced marriages in lockdown. They also reported 20 victims of domestic violence that claim ‘the trigger of their abuse was saying no to a forced marriage‘.
They’ve witnessed a 200% increase in phone calls, a 169% increase in emails, and 28% rise in self-referred victims from 16 March-24 April 2020. 30% of new cases are due to the lockdown.
DESIBlitz reported that ‘forced marriage is becoming more predominant‘ in lockdown.
“Since the lockdown began, the number of forced marriages have increased dramatically. Many children, including the young, are being forced to marry against their own will.”
Women’s rights organization, IKWRO states how they expect to see a rise in reports of forced marriages once lockdown is eased.
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IKWRO reported an ‘increased intensity’ in honor-related violence amid the lockdown and expect the rate of forced marriages to get worse. Plus amid the lockdown, these marriages would be taking place in marriage rites via telephone, Skype, Zoom, etc. So these cases will emerge once lockdown is eased.
IKWRO’s founder, Diana Nammi, said:
“We know through years working with survivors as well as data collected from police forces that they affect nearly every local authority in the country.”
While IKWRO is focused on catering to Kurdish, Arabic, Turkish, Farsi, Dari, Pashtu speaking women, forced marriage is as much an issue in South Asian communities.
If this is the state of conservative communities in Britain, what is the situation in South Asia? This issue has neither been anticipated nor addressed by state governments or local authorities. What’s the situation where you live?
