The Drum Beat 796 - Silent No More: Violence against Women and Children

• 1.From Global Coordination to Local Strategies: A Practical Approach to Prevent, Address, and Document Domestic Violence under COVID-19 [Toolkit and Briefing Paper]
  While important for public health, measures to control the spread of coronavirus, such as shelter-at-home policies, can create more danger for those vulnerable to domestic violence (DV). In response, the United Nations (UN) Secretary General called for a global "ceasefire" on DV. Feminist organisations contend that, to have meaning, the Secretary General's call must be coupled with action at the local level - where DV actually occurs. Because the crisis demands an intersectional approach, a group of women's organisations have analysed successful international interventions - featured in this toolkit and briefing paper - which may be used as inspiration by women's groups working on the frontlines to address DV risks during the COVID-19 pandemic. [Jun 2020 (toolkit); Apr 2020 (briefing paper)]
   
• 2.Community Mobilization Activities for VAW Prevention During COVID-19
  As activist organisations around the world adapt to the new realities of preventing VAW during COVID-19, the Kampala, Uganda-based nonprofit organisation Raising Voices developed a series of practical resources to support these organisations in conducting safe, relevant community engagement to prevent VAW. The activities described within the suite of resources are designed to: provoke discussion and positive actions that mitigate the risk of VAW; role-model and encourage public health safety measures for COVID-19 during VAW prevention; and promote social norms that strengthen solidarity, connection, and compassion. [Oct 2020]
   
• 3.Tackling COVID-19's Hidden Crisis: Violence Against Children
  In a webinar on May 13 2020, the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children and the Office of the Special Representative to the Secretary-General on Violence Against Children brought together nearly 1,000 people from over 130 countries around the world to discuss local, national, and global perspectives on and responses to violence against children amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The webinar explored themes such as including children as key actors in the prevention and response to violence and featured examples of activities on the ground.
   
• 4.Ending Violence against Children and COVID-19: Policy Brief
  As this policy brief's discussion of emerging risks and trends elucidates, quarantine measures limiting movement of people and leading to the closure of public services are exposing children, especially girls, to increased risks of violence. Joining Forces calls for holistic child protection programming that involves organisations working together across education, health, and social protection to reach every child. The brief closes with a call to action and recommendations for governments, donors, UN agencies, and NGOs. [Jul 2020]
   
• 5.Research on Violence against Children during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Guidance to Inform Ethical Data Collection and Evidence Generation
  by Amber Peterman, Alessandra Guedes, Gabrielle Berman, Ramya Subrahmanian, and Claudia CappaCollecting primary data from children or caregivers on the experience of violence during the pandemic presents ethical, safety, and methodological challenges and may pose risks to children, families, and even researchers. This United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) resource is meant to serve as a simple guide to inform decisions related to VAC data collection and evidence generation during and after the COVID-19 crisis.[Oct 2020]
   
• 6.Handbook on Gender-Responsive Police Services for Women and Girls Subject to Violence
  by Mirko Fernandez and Jane TownsleyIn the wake of the "shadow pandemic" of violence against women and girls (VAWG) associated with COVID-19, UN Women, in partnership with United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the International Association of Women Police (IAWP), developed this handbook on gender-responsive police services for women and girls subject to violence. It provides practical, peer-to-peer guidance in an effort to inspire behavioural change towards prevention-oriented, gender-responsive, trauma-informed, and perpetrator-focused policing. [Jan 2021]
   
• See also:
  RESPECT Women: Preventing Violence against Women
  

• On Thursday, February 18 2021, from 11:30-13:00 (GMT), the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and World Health Organization (WHO) are hosting a webinar focused on initiatives in low-resource settings to provide accessible, high-quality, and gender-responsive VAW services. Bringing in voices of researchers, providers, and activists, the webinar - which is free and open to all - presents findings, challenges, and lessons learned from efforts to strengthen health providers' capacities and service preparedness to address VAW and the power relations involved. Click here to learn more and to access the Zoom link.
  
  

• 7.Anti-Domestic Violence Little Vaccine
  In response to the COVID-19 outbreak, many Chinese cities went into complete lockdown for 77 days - exacerbating social problems such as DV. To address this issue, some feminist activists in China connected with one another and formed online support groups for women. One such group launched an activist campaign on March 1 2020 that uses digital media and technologies to bring participants out of the domestic space and into the public space - understood in both physical and virtual terms - in a quarantine context.
   
• 8.Dakhal Do [Intervene]
  Breakthrough India is using popular culture and social media as tools to raise awareness and empower bystanders to recognise unhealthy and problematic behaviours and intervene before abuse or assault takes place. Launched in December 2020, Dakhal Do is a social media campaign to promote bystander intervention to stop acts of violence against women and girls in India's private and public spaces.
   
• 9.Impact Data - MTV Shuga, Season 3, Domestic Violence Subplot
  Many of the women who are victims of physical or sexual violence live in low-income countries, where individuals are often socialised to accept and tolerate gender-based violence (GBV). While the focus of the edutainment series MTV Shuga is HIV/AIDS, the third season included a GBV subplot about a young couple. A cluster randomised trial conducted in 80 urban and semi-urban communities in 7 towns in South West Nigeria found, for example, that, 8 months after the show, men were 6 percentage points less likely to justify forced sex or wife beating, a 21% decrease over the control group. [May 2019]
   
• 10.Smashing Spatial Patriarchy: Shifting Social Norms Driving Sexual and Gender-Based Violence on Public Transport in Sri Lanka
  by Anam Parvez Butt and Sharanya SekaramCo-created by Oxfam with local partners, "Not on My Bus" aims to reduce sexual harassment in public transport in Sri Lanka by promoting bystander intervention. In the context of the campaign's development, this report explores the belief systems that legitimise, excuse, and drive violence against women, girls, transgender, and gender-non-conforming people on public transport in Sri Lanka. [Jul 2019]
   
• 11.Violence Against Women Within the Rohingya Refugee Community: Prevalence, Reasons and Implications for Communication
  To inform the development of a radio drama for Rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, BBC Media Action carried out a small-scale qualitative research study that sought to understand more about Rohingya men and women's understanding and attitudes towards child marriage, intimate partner violence, and sexual exploitation and abuse. Noting that drama can be a vehicle through which normally private conversations between women can be shared, the study concludes with recommendations, such as that the drama should introduce positive deviance characters as male role models. [Nov 2018]
   
• See also:
  Independent Evaluation of the Initiative 'Women Connect - Meet Your Strength'
  

• * The Drum Beat 784: Social Norms, Gender, and Culture
• * The Drum Beat 779: Communicating about Youth, Sexual and Reproductive Health, and Gender

• 12.Reporting on Violence against Women and Girls: A Handbook for Journalists
  by Anne-Marie ImpeAccording to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), media can impact on the achievement of gender equality, since they have the power and capacity to inspire change in norms, attitudes, and behaviours by determining whose voices are heard, why, when, and in what way. In fact, UNESCO contends that journalism serving the public interest is an essential lever in the fight against VAWG. This handbook is designed to be a practical resource for media professionals from across the world with the intention to stimulate reflections on reporting practices, provide information, and promote and improve ethical coverage of GBV. [Nov 2019]
   
• 13.COVID-19: Reporting on Gender-based Violence During Public Health Crises
  This resource from the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) offers background information on GBV in the context of COVID-19, as well as tips and recommendations for journalists, editors, and supervisors to support effective reporting on GBV during pandemics like COVID-19. It also encourages reporting that safeguards the safety of survivors of GBV, as well as the safety and mental health of journalists. [Jun 2020]
   
• 14.The Safety of Women Journalists: Breaking the Cycle of Silence and Violence
  by Silvia ChocarroThis International Media Support (IMS) report assesses how women in media are being targeted and how journalism is impacted by gender-specific harassment and violence. It also discusses efforts to improve the safety and protection of female journalists in 9 countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and South America, with a view to informing debate and actions by media owners and editors, policymakers, press freedom organisations, and journalists. [Oct 2019]
   
• 15.Online Violence Against Women Journalists: A Global Snapshot of Incidence and Impacts
  by Julie Posetti, Nermine Aboulez, Kalina Bontcheva, Jackie Harrison, and Silvio WaisbordThis report presents a snapshot of the first substantial findings from a global survey about online violence against women journalists conducted by UNESCO and the International Center for Journalists (ICFJ) in late 2020. Part of a broader research project, these findings shed light on the incidences, impacts, and responses to online violence against women in an effort to improve responses and identify more effective methods to counter this threat to press freedom, journalists' safety, and women's active participation in journalism. [Dec 2020]
   
• 16.Reporting on Gender-Based Violence in Humanitarian Settings: A Journalist's Handbook
  In its second edition, this handbook was developed by the UNFPA Arab States Regional Humanitarian Response Hub to help journalists report on GBV, with a particular emphasis on humanitarian settings. It provides information on the definition and root causes of GBV, as well as guidelines, tips, and best practices that are designed to help journalists deliver ethically sound, stronger, more impactful stories. [Mar 2020]
   
• See also:
  Attacks and Harassment: The Impact on Female Journalists and Their Reporting
  

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