Akel and Edek have called on the government to do more about the sharp increase of domestic violence cases since the start of the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic.
On Thursday Akel released a statement saying that in March 2,075 calls were made to the association for the prevention and handling of violence in the family (Spavo), but only 1,154 of those were answered.
The same trend has continued in April, according to the party, which said that, up to Thursday, only 1,386 out of 2,936 calls made to Spavo were answered.
On top of that, there have been 36 incidents in which police have had to intervene since the lockdown.
“What is worrying is that people who are abused, usually women and children, often cannot report the incidents because they are in the same house as their abusers,” said Akel MP Skevi Koukouma.
“We need to make more technological tools available in order to make it easier for the victims to ask for help. Through the discussion, the need for further use of technology has become apparent with new means of communication available that will make it easier for victims to ask for help.”
In their statement, Akel urged the police and Spavo to expand channels communication by using chat rooms, apps and having a dedicated email address for people who suffer abuse during the lockdown.
Moreover, they called on Spavo to hire more people at their call centre, so that not a single call is ignored and they urged the welfare service to financially support those abused so they don’t have to share a home with the perpetrators, as most of them are forced to do so because of a lack of financial resources.
Edek also released a statement on Thursday echoing Akel’s plea.
“The coronavirus and the lockdown cannot be used as excuses for the lack of response to domestic violence,” the statement said.
“The police need to be alert, especially in this delicate period. In addition to that, all calls made to report domestic violence should be recorded and properly filed so they can be used as proof by the victims.”
Finally, the Mediterranean Institute of Gender Studies (Migs) chimed in on the subject saying that the implementation of the Istanbul Convention, a human rights treaty of the Council of Europe against violence against women and domestic violence signed in May 2011, was more urgent than ever.
“As we deal with a double pandemic, encompassing the acute phenomenon of Covid-19, as well as the chronic issue of violence against women, it is more important than ever to expedite the implementation of the provisions of the Istanbul Convention, so that we can make a positive difference to the lives of women and girls in Cyprus. It’s time for the Cyprus government to step up and take action,” Migs said.
