The pandemic's impact on gender issues in the Gaza Strip

The fifth episode of the programme “Gaza in the face of Corona” was broadcast on Radio Alwan, implemented by Pal-Think for Strategic Studies and funded by the Atlas institution, on 26 October 2020. The talk was of the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on the services presented by the legal-aid unit at the Palestinian Bar Association in Gaza — embodied in presenting free legal consultations and legal and judicial representation for the marginalised categories — in addition to gender issues in the Gaza Strip.

The lawyer Yousef Salem, coordinator of the legal-aid unit at the Palestinian Bar Association, spoke on the effect of the closure condition because of the coronavirus on the level of the services presented to the marginalised categories during the past month of March — pointing out that the association set a plan for dealing with the state of emergency and the closure, especially upon the virus's spread in society last August. This forced the association to close all its premises for 3 consecutive weeks and to work face-to-face in emergency cases only, with the prevention measures taken. As for the present time, work at the association is face-to-face within strict measures, and remote through telephone contact and social-media platforms.

Salem mentioned that the legal unit continued receiving cases of abused women — according to the controls imposed by force of the pandemic's circumstances — directly or referred from the partner institutions, with the appropriate and legal measures taken to attempt to limit the spread of violence even in light of the coronavirus pandemic. He likewise pointed out that the police apparatuses' preoccupation with imposing the state of emergency concerning the epidemic helped the abusers continue their violence against women.

Likewise, the courts' stoppage for a month and a half, the piling up of cases, and the confinement of judgment to the old cases and the urgent requests represented a challenge before the cases submitted in gender matters and delayed judgment in them. A growth of the phenomenon of family violence was seen during the coronavirus pandemic, given the deterioration of economic conditions and the length of the home-quarantine period.

Mr Salem expected the pandemic's effect on society to aggravate, reaching the laying off of many workers, and especially working women, because of the prevailing masculine view. It is probable that the small and medium enterprises in which women work will close, and accordingly the unemployment rate among women will increase.

Then the lawyer Hala Nabhan, working at the Women's Affairs Centre, spoke of the courts' situation on the side of violence cases. She confirmed what Mr Salem mentioned about the courts closing for a month and a half, then opening and confining themselves to the old cases. Thereby the Women's Affairs Centre could not raise new cases or even demand the execution of the judgments issued, because of the police apparatuses' preoccupation with applying the state of emergency.

Ms Nabhan pointed out that the courts are working fully, with the prevention measures observed, in the various cases from maintenance and dowries to custody cases, except separation cases — as the lawyer can submit all the cases and have them looked into through the sessions. But because of the coronavirus pandemic, and Sheikh Radwan being a red zone, the Sheikh Radwan court is closed.

She concluded her talk by speaking of the efforts of the women's and rights institutions, which continued presenting their services even during the period of the virus's spread. They likewise provided a hotline to present the necessary legal and social support from the institution — in addition to holding many awareness workshops through electronic encounters and sessions, and coming out of them with recommendations presented to the concerned bodies to present the appropriate legal and social support to the marginalised categories in a better manner.