Use pandemic recovery as an opportunity to pivot to gender equality

Research by UNFPA and UN Women in collaboration with analytics company Quilt.AI found that internet searches related to physical violence – including keywords such as “physical abuse signs”, “violent relationship”, and “cover bruises on face” – in Malaysia, Philippines and Nepal increased 47%, 63%, and 55%, respectively between October 2019 and September 2020. Photo: 123rf.com

Online misogyny, including trolling, sexual harassment and victim-blaming, saw a rise during the pandemic, according to Covid-19 and Violence against Women: The Evidence behind the Talk, a report by UNFPA and UN Women.

According to data in the report, internet searches related to physical violence – including keywords such as “physical abuse signs”, “violent relationship”, and “cover bruises on face” – in Malaysia, Philippines and Nepal increased 47%, 63%, and 55%, respectively between October 2019 and September 2020.