In its Protection Monitoring Report for the first quarter of the year 2022, UNRWA reported that:
“Women and girls were said to be suffering from ongoing high levels of violence in the home as the socio-economic crisis continued to heighten tensions within families while also forcing them to spend more time together in often crowded homes, with little hope for an improved situation. While focal points reported that the majority of violence against women and girls took place in domestic settings, harassment in the street and online also continued, particularly emphasised in Central Lebanon Area. According to focal points, reporting of sexual violence or exploitation against children continues to be rare due to children not knowing how to report it, fear of retaliation, taboos around mentioning it, and a lack of trust in the system.”
(Source: UNRWA, “UNRWA Protection Monitoring Report – Quarter 1 (Q1) 2022”, 1 July 2022, p. 4)
The UN office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported in April 2022 about GBV risks for women and girls resulting directly from their refugee status and associated living conditions:
“Protection risks and harmful coping strategies
PRL [Palestinian refugees in Lebanon] households face protection risks resulting directly from their refugee status and associated living conditions, with women and girls likely to be more exposed to safety and security incidents. Sexual harassment was reported as a main safety and security concern by 8 per cent of the PRL households with the presence of at least one woman, while physical harassment or violence was reported by 5 per cent. This increases to 13 per cent and 8 per cent respectively in PRL households with the presence of girls. Physical violence was also highlighted as a key concern for children with disabilities. Similar to Lebanese households, protection concerns were highest in Akkar and North in comparison to other governorates. Limited access to services for women who experienced gender-based violence is a major challenge, with more than half of PRL households reporting no access to specialized services for women in their community.
(Source: OCHA, Increasing Humanitarian Needs in Lebanon, April 2022, 14 April 2022, p. 28)
The same report further stated, based on the Multi-Sectoral Needs Assessment (MSNA) conducted by the REACH Initiative in December 2021, that:
“The needs of PRL and migrants are exacerbated by their marginalization, which is often related to their legal status, and the associated challenges in accessing specialized prevention and response services. An estimated 50,000 PRL (of whom 89 per cent are women and girls, with boys also at risk in some areas) are considered in need of GBV services, with a large number residing in Akkar and South governorates. An additional 46,000 migrants (80 per cent women, 16 percent girls, 3 percent men and 1 percent boys) are estimated to be in need of GBV services. The region with the highest number of migrants in need is Beirut and Mount Lebanon.
Because of gender inequality and a deficient legal system, women, girls and marginalized groups including gender minorities (such as trans gender women and men, and gender non-binary individuals) are the most in need of GBV services in Lebanon.
[…] “ANALYSIS OF HUMANITARIAN NEEDS
Around a quarter of Lebanese households reported having safety and security concerns for women in their community (including as being exposed to sexual violence and harassment, kidnapping, and sexual exploitation), and the percentage is even higher, if girls are considered (34 per cent). Moreover, nearly half (45 per cent) of Lebanese households have reported psychological distress of at least one adult member negatively impacted by the crisis.”
(Source: OCHA, “Increasing Humanitarian Needs in Lebanon, April 2022”, 14 April 2022, p. 33)
CEDAW calls upon the State party to ensure the rights of women by adopting, as a matter of priority, legal provisions protecting women’s rights:
“47. The Committee commends the State party for maintaining its long-standing open border and reception policy for Palestinian refugees and those from the Syrian Arab Republic, and for hosting more than 2 million refugees. The Committee remains concerned, however, that the 1962 law regulating the entry into, stay in and exit from Lebanon does not distinguish between asylum seekers, refugees and migrants. The Committee is also concerned about the high number of reported cases of child and/or forced marriage among Palestinian and Syrian refugee girls and women.
48. In line with its general recommendation No. 32 (2014) on the gender-related dimensions of refugee status, asylum, nationality and statelessness of women, the Committee recommends that the State party:
(a) Strengthen its procedures for identifying asylum seekers and determining asylum status, which should be gender- sensitive, age-sensitive and culturally sensitive, in order to ensure the systematic and early identification of women and girls who are victims or at risk of gender-based violence, and provide appropriate assistance to such women and girls;
(b) Review the 1962 law regulating the entry into, stay in and exit from Lebanon, to distinguish between the protection needs of asylum-seeking and refugee women on the one hand and those of migrant women on the other;
(c) Prevent and eradicate child and/or forced marriage through coordinated action, in collaboration with non- governmental organizations and community leaders, in particular by raising awareness of the criminal nature and harmful impact of child and/or forced marriages on girls and women and by ensuring that all such cases are investigated and that those responsible are prosecuted and adequately punished, and systematically collecting data on the number of cases reported, investigations, prosecutions and convictions, as well as on the penalties imposed in cases of forced marriage.
(Source: Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, “Concluding observations on the sixth periodic report of Lebanon”, 01 March 2022, p. 13)
Based on UNRWA reports from 2015 and 2016, UN Women reported in July 2021 that:
“Recent data suggests that 65% of Palestinians live in poverty, and that Palestinian women experience high rates of GBV, likely closely associated with economic vulnerability (Chaaban et al. 2016; UNRWA 2015).” (p.18)
(Source: UN Women “European Union Sector Specific Gender Analysis: An in-depth sectoral examination of feminist and women’s rights issues in Lebanon”, July 2021, pp 18)
As part of the 2020 annual implementation report on its Gender Equality Strategy, UNRWA wrote about the suspension of microcredits for Palestine refugees:
“During 2020, an assessment for GBV [Gender-based violence] services was conducted at UNRWA health centres to explore the perceptions of 805 health staff members and 1,326 community members towards GBV during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results indicated a perceived increase in the number of domestic violence cases, specifically
towards women and children. Health staff perceived a particular increase in psychological and physical violence, as well as denial of resources. The community indicated they would be most likely to seek GBV help and assistance from UNRWA health staff or from NGOs in general.
In Gaza, the Health Department identified a total of 1,432 cases of GBV. 252 cases of GBV were identified through the hotlines established during the lockdown. 1,092 cases of GBV (psychological and physical violence, forced marriage, sexual abuse, rape) were identified and taken on by RSS legal counsellors. Support sessions were organised for women, aimed at awareness-raising and at encouraging possible GBV survivors to seek psychological assistance, and a GBV Manual was created and shared with women by health counsellors. Finally, Facebook and WhatsApp groups were created as support forums for women to connect with each other during the pandemic.
[…] In Lebanon, a total of only 53 GBV survivors were assisted in 2020. The limited number of cases can be attributed to the general underreporting of GBV, amongst other factors. In fact, women and girls in FGDs reported that violence within the home is being normalized, and that they would be unlikely to report violence out of fear of retaliation, losing their children, economic restrictions, or the stigma attached to divorce. However, women did report an increase in domestic violence amidst the pandemic, with negative effects on children at home. In FGDs, women told UNRWA that male family members were expressing their helplessness, frustration, and inability to fulfil their responsibilities through violence. They also reported an increase in inter-sibling violence and an increase in control by their fathers and brothers, resulting in limited movements and surveillance.
Although the level of access to services varies between areas in Lebanon, there is a general lack of knowledge on UNRWA services amongst the refugee population and a lack of trust regarding the confidentiality of services provided inside the camps. Awareness-raising sessions on GBV and COVID-19 were conducted through WhatsApp for 1,344 women to strengthen resilience and increase knowledge on UNRWA services. In addition, remote awareness-raising sessions were organised for 399 men to discuss healthy and positive stress-management and prevent GBV.”
(Source: UNRWA, “UNRWA Gender Equality Strategy 2016-2021: annual implementation report January-December 2020”, May 2021, p. 8-9)
With reference to gender-based violence, UNRWA reported:
“Risk factors including difficult socio-economic conditions, including overcrowded living conditions, lack of privacy and high levels of poverty, the limited control exercised by Lebanese authorities within Palestinian refugee camps and an environment characterized by insecurity and violence, contribute to a high prevalence of violence against women and children amongst the Palestine refugee community. Fear of retaliation or escalation of violence, as well as shame and stigma experienced by survivors, lack of confidentiality and limited availability of protective services within the camps, result in high levels of underreporting of gender-based violence (GBV), especially for domestic violence and sexual exploitation. Furthermore, the lack of formal legal authority within the camps has resulted in limited access to safety and justice for survivors of GBV and children at risk of violence. Based on GBV case management undertaken by UNRWA in Lebanon, between 2013 and 2018, the following statistics and key trends among reported GBV incidents have been identified:
• 38 per cent of reported cases concern incidents of physical assault; 22 per cent of reported cases concern incidents of emotional and psychological abuse; 23 per cent of reported cases concern incidents of sexual violence, of which 7 per cent of cases concern rape.
• 65 per cent of reported sexual violence incidents were perpetrated against minors; 89 per cent of forced marriage incidents were perpetrated against minors and 43 per cent of all identified survivors were minors.
• Domestic violence, sexual violence (rape and sexual assault) and exploitation, as well as child marriage, were the most commonly reported incidents connected to the reported cases of emotional and physical abuse.
In addition, GBV risk within the home has been exacerbated by COVID-19 related measures across refugee communities in Lebanon. 54 percent of women and girls interviewed for an inter-agency assessment reported observing an increased risk of GBV incidents in their households, such as emotional abuse, violence and denial of resources. Furthermore, UNRWA’s legal aid unit registered a significant increase in the number of family law cases related to domestic violence and child protection received during the lockdown period.”
(Source: UNRWA: “Protection brief: Palestine refugees living in Lebanon”, September 2020, p. 3)