Coronavirus: Italy lockdown trapping domestic abuse victims with perpetrators

Women are now confined at home with their abusers and are struggling to call for help, Aurora Percannella reports

File photo: Women rally on the International Day for Elimination of Violence against Women in Rome (AFP/Getty)

Over the past 24 days of lockdown, Alice* has been forced to create a world of her own to get by. She wakes up every morning in her 10-year-old daughter’s bed, tidies up the apartment, cooks and when the chores are done, she sits in her daughter’s room and sews. She enjoys making bags, blankets and necklaces, and in easier times she would sell them in exchange for a little money.

For her husband, her creations are a “load of crap” and he tells their daughter not to eat her food because “it’s not good enough”. Once a week, he sends her to the supermarket because he says it’s too risky for him. He doesn’t care if she gets sick. Every day, she treads lightly in her own home, so as not to inadvertently provoke his rage.

“I try to stay positive to cope, but the coronavirus outbreak has been a huge blow,” she says.