Social Reality, Statistics and Pandemic

The "Black Figure", Invisibility and Barriers to Reporting

When analyzing the prevalence of violence, we must be aware that official statistics from police reports or court sentences represent, unfortunately, only a tiny fraction of the reality.

In criminology, this vast ocean of unreported cases is called the "dark figure" of crime.

It is estimated that the vast majority of incidents, especially those involving psychological abuse, coercive control, economic violence and intimate partner sexual violence, never come to the attention of the authorities.

This is not due to the negligence of the victims, but to multiple structural and emotional barriers: paralyzing fear of lethal reprisals, social shame, absolute economic dependence or systemic distrust in a justice system that often fails to protect.

In addition, there is a cultural invisibility that normalizes abuse under phrases such as "they are dirty laundry to be washed at home" or justifying obsessive jealousy as "proof of love".

This normalization makes it difficult for the victims themselves to recognize themselves as such until the violence escalates to serious physical levels.

Therefore, a decrease in reporting numbers should not automatically be interpreted as a reduction in violence, but possibly as an indicator that the barriers to calling for help have become more insurmountable.

Pandemic as Catalyst and Laboratory of Control

The global health crisis provoked by COVID-19 functioned as a devastating catalyst for domestic violence, a phenomenon that international agencies aptly termed "The Other Pandemic."

The confinement and mobility restriction measures gave perpetrators the ultimate control tool: total isolation, legitimized by the state of emergency.

Victims were trapped 24 hours a day with their perpetrators, without the usual escape valves such as work, school or family visits, and with restricted access to support networks and social services.

During this period, a dangerous mutation in abuse tactics was observed: unable to exert control through external surveillance, perpetrators increased cyber-control, restriction of food and hygiene products, and extreme psychological violence within the home.

Analysis of this period teaches us a fundamental lesson about the dynamics of abuse: batterers are opportunists who quickly adapt external contexts (crisis, unemployment, confinement) to reinforce their internal dominance and close the siege on the victim.

Summary

Official statistics represent only a small part of the reality, a phenomenon known as the "black figure". Most psychological and economic abuse is never reported.

There are immense structural barriers to reporting, such as fear of reprisals and economic dependence. The cultural normalization of abuse prevents many victims from recognizing themselves as victims in time.

The COVID-19 pandemic acted as a devastating catalyst for abuse. Confinement gave abusers a tool of total control, isolating victims from their support networks.