What Measures for What Politics? Gender-Based Violence Protection and the RDL Policy Gap for Women in Italy (2021-2024)

All forms of gender-based violence (GBV), particularly intimate partner violence (IPV), have intensified with the onset of the pandemic, partly because of closures associated with Covid 19. The pandemic has brought into sharper focus the link between GBV/IPV and economic or livelihood deprivation, highlighting that shelters and helplines for women are necessary but insufficient. The picture is even bleaker for immigrant women. The Italian case is very interesting. The government's decision to adopt a measure to protect women victims of domestic violence, the Reddito di Libertà (RDL) policy, during the pandemic was undeniably innovative, even if a few years later it shows limitations. This article examines GBV from an intersectional perspective and attempts to assess the coverage capacity of the RDL policy among Italian and foreign women living in Italy who are victims of IPV. The findings highlight how the RDL policy seems to have been designed more to manage emergencies than to effectively address GBV. Highlighting the selectivity in the application of the policy, the article concludes by arguing that it is necessary to consider the structural intersectionality that GBV feeds on to plan a more effective and inclusive policy strategy.

新冠疫情暴发以来，各类基于性别暴力（gender-based violence, GBV）——尤其是亲密伴侣暴力（intimate partner violence, IPV）——的发生频次与严重程度均显著攀升，部分诱因与新冠疫情相关的防疫关停措施有关。此次疫情进一步清晰地凸显了基于性别暴力/亲密伴侣暴力与经济困境或生计剥夺之间的关联，同时揭示出：针对女性的庇护所与求助热线虽属必要，但仅靠此类举措远远不足以应对相关问题。对于移民女性而言，处境则更为惨淡。意大利的相关案例极具研究价值。疫情期间，意大利政府出台了一项针对家庭暴力女性受害者的保护政策——《自由收入》（Reddito di Libertà, RDL）政策，该举措无疑具有创新性，尽管数年后该政策暴露出诸多局限。本文从交叉性视角（intersectional perspective）出发，对基于性别暴力问题展开研究，并试图评估《自由收入》政策对意大利本国及旅居意大利的外籍亲密伴侣暴力受害者女性的覆盖能力。研究结果显示，《自由收入》政策的设计初衷更偏向于应急处置，而非从根本上有效应对基于性别暴力问题。本文同时揭示了该政策在执行过程中存在的选择性偏差，并在结论部分提出：若要制定更具实效性与包容性的政策策略，必须考量基于性别暴力所依托的结构性交叉性特征。