EDITORIAL - Opportunities for violence

The crime volume went down by 56.53 percent during the community quarantine, according to the Philippine National Police. There is a dark side to confinement at home, however, especially when domestic tensions arise from the loss of livelihoods and there are no outlets for boredom and aggression.

President Duterte himself, in his 11th report to Congress this week on the government’s response to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, said police have recorded 3,699 violent incidents against women and children since the COVID-19 lockdowns were imposed in mid-March.

Of the number, 1,945 cases of violence targeted women while 1,754 were against children, the President reported. Malacañang is urging the public to report such cases to authorities. Under the law, barangay officials are tasked to assist victims of domestic violence, while the PNP is supposed to have women’s desks to attend to such cases. The Philippine Commission on Women is also addressing online inquiries on the problem.

As groups working with victims of domestic violence know only too well, however, reporting such abuses is not as simple as it sounds. Families typically treat domestic violence as an internal problem. There are women from all income classes who are embarrassed to report that they are battered by their husbands or partners. When they do muster the gumption to seek help, there are numerous reports of barangay officials refusing to help, telling the complainants that it is a private family matter.

Neighbors may also hesitate to interfere in family affairs. People, however, are encouraged to overcome this hesitation when they see signs that their neighbors especially children are suffering from violence and other forms of abuse. The Philippine Commission on Women is implementing a referral system that aims to improve monitoring and reduce cases of gender-based violence. Efforts to prevent domestic violence must be intensified as the pandemic quarantines provide more opportunities for harming women and children in their own homes.