Pope prays for lockdown victims of domestic abuse
Pope Francis prayed Monday for the growing number of women subjected to domestic abuse while living under coronavirus lockdown.
Pope Francis appears at the window of the Apostolic palace on April 13, 2020 in The Vatican, after delivering his message during a private Angelus prayer live broadcast from the palace’s library on Easter Monday, during the lockdown aimed at curbing the spread of the COVID-19 infection, caused by the novel coronavirus. (Photo by Vincenzo PINTO / AFP)
The Argentine pontiff livestreamed an Easter Monday prayer from his private library as the Vatican and Italy entered a second month of restrictions on most outdoor activities.
Worries about domestic abuse have spread across the world as nations force billions to stay at home to stop the spread of a disease that has officially killed nearly 115,000 people.
The pope offered a prayer to the “many mothers and sisters who find themselves locked in the house with the whole family, with children, with the elderly and the disabled.
“Sometimes they are at risk of being subjected to violence, for a coexistence in which they carry too great a burden,” Francis said.
“We pray for them, that God may give them strength and that our communities can support them together with their families.”
Countries from Australia to France have seen surges in the number of domestic violence cases reported to the police.
But worries persist that many abuses go unreported and that the true scale of the violence is unknown.
Italy’s interior ministry is using a phone app to help geo-locate reports of domestic of violence.
The government has also allocated $30 million euros ($32.8 million) to help shelter women victims of domestic abuse.
For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.
For more news your way
Download our app and read this and other great stories on the move. Available for Android and iOS.
