According to Unizon, which brings together 130 women's and girls' shelters, women exposed to violence are even more affected by crises such as the corona pandemic, as more people work at home and isolate themselves. To meet the need, Unizon and the affiliated women's shelters this spring invested in starting chats. In total, about 20 women's shelters have offered women to hear from them via a chat - and there, vulnerable women have heard from them during ongoing violence.

- It can help in many situations because you can get in touch without telling them that you are chatting with a women's shelter. The women can do it in a sense of security to a greater extent, you do not have to call so that it is heard, says Rebecka Andersson, Secretary General of Unizon, to SVT News.

What comes up in the chats?

- There are serious things coming up. Very serious violence and we connect it with the fact that women are more at home with men. 

Started chat

One of the women's shelters that has offered women to chat is the women's shelter in Solna.

- In the chat, I experience, to an even greater extent, that it is a first contact women make. It is often the case that you have never told anyone about the violence and have not sought help before. The women want to know what they can do in this situation, says Bridgett Stehag, operations manager at the women's shelter.

Increased crime against women

According to figures from the Swedish Crime Prevention Council (Brå), 14,100 assault crimes against women were reported during the first half of the year. This is an increase of four percent compared to the same time last year and 82 percent of the reported crimes were committed by a person known to the victim. As for rapes, there is also an increase. A total of 3,850 crimes against women and girls were reported, which was an increase of three percent.

But despite the increase, several women's shelters experienced a decrease in the number of vulnerable women who applied to them this spring.

- We believe that there is a large number of blacks, and there is always so when it comes to violence. But I think it is especially big now during the corona pandemic with the isolation that has been, says Bridgett Stehag and continues:

- Because as violence works, isolation is such a big factor. The violence can then continue and it is often a strategy that the perpetrator has to isolate the victim.