While cases of domestic violence have exploded during confinements, the Minister of Citizenship surprises with this statement. Because in fact, these acts have nothing to do with the fact of "decompressing" …
Marlène Schiappa, Minister Delegate in charge of Citizenship, was interviewed by Le Parisien on January 9, 2021. And commented, among other things, on the very strong increase in domestic violence in times of pandemic. The arretonslesviolences.gouv.fr platform recorded an explosion of reports of 60% during the second confinement. The first had already been the occasion of a strong increase, of 40% this time, which was felt by mid-March. The associations then carried out fundraising campaigns to shelter women in hotels. "What is forbidden is to go out, not to run away", had to remind us of the We All association.
It is by trying to explain the increase in violence within the framework of a second confinement, however less strict, that Marlène Schiappa aimed alongside the problem. "With the pandemic, the looming economic and social crisis, there has been an extremely high level of tension since this fall, with fewer pressure relief valves for people who had to stay at home. It has had an impact.", she told the Parisian. Since the perpetrators of violence are overwhelmingly men, should we understand that women have less need to "decompress"?
A problem of male violence, no "valves"
If the explanations of the Minister jumped, it is because the decompression valves are currently lacking in the world, men and women. Women may even miss them more … In heterosexual families and during the pandemic, they were in fact more in demand than their spouses. As of March 2020, members of parliament have thus warned about the increase in their domestic work time. They are also the ones who mostly paid for the children's education time, during the period when school was done at a distance. However, it is the men who, in the great majority, exerted violence on the women during the two confinements. It is therefore not the context that should be singled out, but the authors and behind, the patriarchal culture at work.
Another problem: the image of the "valve" gives the impression that violating his partner (by gestures, but also blackmail, insults, pressure …) would be a way to release tensions, just like the sport or airing. However, domestic violence is a way to control the other, not to "get over the nerves". This is proven, among other works, by a study by the World Health Organization published in 2002, which lists the situations triggering domestic violence: "not obeying the man, answering him, not having prepared the meal on time, not taking good care of the children or the household, asking the man about money matters or about girlfriends, go somewhere without the man's permission, refuse to sleep with the man, the man suspects the woman of infidelity ".
We understand that the root of domestic violence, confinement or not, remains patriarchy. As much to tackle them frankly, rather than to reinforce them by essentializing remarks – the men would have more "need to let off steam" than the women.