BUENOS AIRES, April 21 — Weeks of confinement imposed by the coronavirus pandemic is taking a chilling toll on women and girls across Latin America, where the number of calls to helplines have soared, made by victims of domestic violence who cannot flee. Appeals to help women experiencing...
The lockdown in several countries of Latin America as a measure against the spread of the new coronavirus escalated help requests from victims of domestic abuse, who are forced to live with their agressor, in a region where the average femicide per day is around a dozen. — AFP pic
“The confinement is plunging thousands of women into hell, trapped with an attacker who they are more afraid of than the coronavirus,” said Victoria Aguirre from the Argentine NGO MuMaLa, which campaigns against violence related to macho culture. “Unfortunately, many women and girls are particularly exposed to violence precisely where they should be protected, in their own homes,” said UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, who issued a call for a domestic violence “ceasefire” as lockdowns extended into April.
“In normal times, we would help her to file a complaint. These days, the urgency is to get her out of the house as quickly as possible.” Maria Salguero, who researches violence against women and created a “femicide map” around the country, estimated that around 200 women have been murdered since quarantine measures began.The sordid murder of Ana Paola, a 13-year-old who was raped and beaten to death by a burglar in the northeastern state of Sonora in early April, provoked widespread disgust and anger in Mexico.
Mexican feminist activists have demanded more effective policies from President Andres Manuel Lopez to combat the wave of violence.In Sao Paulo, the epicentre of Brazil’s virus outbreak, reports of domestic violence have risen by 30 per cent since the state government imposed a stay-at-home order.
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