The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) urges the public to report cases of violence against women (VAW) that happen everywhere – at home, in school, in the workplace, and now increasingly in online spaces.
It said VAW cases can be reported to the commission online at http://gbvcovid.report.
Lamentably, cases of abuse remain unreported because of the shame and stigma surrounding the incidents and, thus, as a result, perpetrators often go unpunished, the CHR said.
In its social media post, the CHR said that VAW cases are unfortunately rooted in low education and in the perpetrator and victim's own experiences with domestic abuse.
"Men can become more likely to perpetuate violence if they have low education, a history of child maltreatment, exposure to domestic violence against their mothers, harmful use of alcohol, unequal gender norms including attitudes accepting of violence, and a sense of entitlement over women," it said.
On the other hand, it noted that women can become more likely to experience intimate partner abuse if they, too, have low education or exposure to their own mothers being abused by a partner.
“They are also susceptible if they experienced abuse during childhood and have lived in a culture where male privilege and women's subordinate status are upheld,” it said.
"VAW -- particularly intimate partner violence and sexual violence -- is a major public health problem and a violation of women's human rights. Most of VAW is intimate partner violence," it noted.
Citing a report, the CHR said that all over the world, almost one-third (30 percent) of women who have been in a relationship complained that they have experienced some form of physical and/or sexual violence by their intimate partner in their lifetime.
In the Philippines, it said, the recorded data of the Philippine National Police (PNP) also reveal that live-in partners or spouses are the most common perpetrators of VAW.
It pointed out that the victims suffer negatively from the abuse they have experienced, and the abuses affect their physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health, and may even increase the risk of acquiring HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) in some settings.
It then urged Filipinos to do their part in ending the cycle of VAW, and they can start by reporting cases of abuse to the proper authorities.