[ad_1]
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court agreed to hear a petition seeking to implement immediate and effective measures against domestic violence and child abuse amid the closure of the coronavirus COVID-19.
The petition draws the court’s attention to incidents of domestic violence and child abuse not only in India but also in other countries such as Australia, the United Kingdom and the US. USA Speaking of recent reports suggesting countries are witnessing an increase in domestic violence cases since the imposition of the COVID-19 blockade, the petition also mentions that helpline numbers across India received as many as 92,000 calls in the first 11 days of the lockout period.
The Indian Council for Human Rights, Freedoms and Social Justice (AICHLS), an NGO represented by defenders Mithu Jain, Arjun Syal and Vidisha Kumar, submitted a statement to the Delhi High Court. This petition seeks urgent court intervention to protect women and children across the country who continue to experience domestic abuse. Violence against women and children tends to increase during each type of emergency, including epidemics.
The plea states that due to the health blockade, the impacts of such violence, particularly towards women or children, are significant and urged the court to learn and design methods to help and protect victims who are “trapped” with their abusers. The request to list the reason for an urgent hearing has been granted by the Delhi High Court.
Even the Secretary-General of the United Nations, António Guterres, took note of the seriousness of cases of domestic violence worldwide since the imposition of the COVID-19 blockade and called on nations to consider the safety of women in this Pandemic on the warpath and as a priority. In a tweet he recently wrote, Guterres called on governments to put “women’s safety first as they respond to the pandemic.”
Meanwhile, the World Health Organization (WHO) also took into account the increase in cases of domestic violence in European countries and in the United States. And issued guidelines for various health sectors / systems worldwide, advising on steps that can be taken to help women who are trapped in their homes due to the COVID-19 blockade.
[ad_2]
