It is well established that six months since the first cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Indonesia the pandemic has disrupted the lives of many.

The loss of income and the psychological toll of the pandemic, coupled with a general lack of access to public services, has been especially difficult for women who are trapped in homes with abusers.

With little means of escape, there has been a rise in the number of cases of abuse reported. Physical and mental abuse in domestic households have risen during the pandemic to 75 per cent according to P2TP2A and the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan).

The Ministry of Women Empowerment and Child Protection along with Ministry of Health have recently launched specific guidelines in handling victims of violence against women and children during the pandemic.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Technical Implementation Unit of the Integrated Service Center for Empowering Women and Children (UPT P2TP2A) in Jakarta have worked together to formulate the standard operating procedures (SOP) designed for officers at UPT P2TP2A Jakarta.

The SOPs are a reference point to provide services such as counselling, legal help, and shelter to clients during the pandemic using safety protocols.

The National Commission on Violence Against Women, in the early stages of the outbreak, raised concerns on the limited capacity of GBV Reporting Channels in providing services during the pandemic, where the services may even be closed due to lack of health protocols.

With UNDP's support, government institutions in Jakarta have adopted, in total, nine SOPs for handling cases of Violence against Women and Children, in compliance with COVID-19 measures, and deployed 278 (194 women and 84 men) service providers including medical doctors, to handle cases related to COVID-19.

Three SOPs are in place at the Jakarta Provincial Unit of Women and Child Protection (P2TP2A), which includes complaints services, survivor assistance during the reporting process, and outreach mechanisms. Six SOPs are now in-place at reporting units in a local hospital, which is designed to ensure safe handling of cases, both for patients and medical personnel, from areas exposed to COVID-19.

The SOPs have helped secure the availability of safe-services and medical facilities for the survivors of violence separate from the treatment of patients diagnosed with COVID-19; the integration of the new SOPs into the daily practices and policies of service providers, and most importantly keeping the services open during the pandemic.

“The launch of these SOPs will prioritize services for survivors of gender based violence. It will also accelerate the investigation process via the use of electronic forensic medical examinations to help officers with their investigations,” said Dr. Boge Priyo Nugroho Sp.F Head of Integrated Service Center, Tarakan Hospital, Jakarta.

Following the successful outcome from the advocacy of these procedures to hospital management and local social affairs agencies, UNDP will replicate the initiative in nine other locations.

To strengthen the continuity of programme intervention and provide stronger evidence for advocacy, UNDP’s ongoing survey of survivors of GBV and workers in the Care economy will help provide a clearer picture of the socio-economic impact of the COVID19 pandemic on women.

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Text by Octaviyanti Putri

Edited by Ranjit Jose