Racial abuse more prevalent in COVID-19 pandemic: report

SYDNEY - While many Asian women are experiencing multiple types of abuse, racialized ones are more prevalent in the COVID-19 pandemic, said a recent report by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

The article, published on ABC's website Friday, cited a new survey report by the advocacy group It's Not A Compliment (INAC), which surveyed 343 respondents who had experienced harassment like catcalling, whistling, honking, gestures and unwanted touching in public spaces.

The survey found that 91.4 percent of respondents who had experienced street harassment were identified as women, and around a quarter of them identified as women of color, with South-East Asians being the largest ethnic group, followed by South Asians and East Asians, according to the report.

According to the ABC's article, although incidents of street harassment declined during the COVID-19 lockdown, racialized abuse was more prevalent.

The INAC's survey found 6.1 percent of the respondents faced an increase in harassment in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic, with the majority of them from Asian backgrounds.

According to the article, the survey was also in line with the Asian Australian Alliance (AAA) report into COVID-fuelled racism against Asian Australians last year.

Erin Chew, convenor of the AAA, has said that most incidents experienced by Asian women were reported to have taken place in shops, in shopping center car parks, or on the street while they were walking.