In France, the number of reports of domestic violence to the police has risen more than 30 percent since the beginning of lockdown in the country on 17 March.

The lockdown restrictions are forcing people to stay indoors, putting rising pressures on women living with an abusive partner or relative.

The 'NousToutes' ('We Women Together') campaign group organized protests last year to raise awareness of domestic violence and the murder of women by their partners in France. The group says that the confinement has made the problem much worse.

"During the lockdown, abuse is more present for two reasons," says Caroline de Haas, from NousToutes. "Firstly, women spend their entire day in confinement with their partner. Secondly, the stress of the whole situation around the pandemic can lead to a higher level of violence.

"Psychological violence becomes physical, and physical violence becomes sexual."

The French authorities have expanded an existing helpline so that women who are victims of domestic violence only need to send a text to raise the alarm, and can do so privately and safely.

Additionally, since the lockdown started pharmacies have been designated safe places where women can go and speak in confidence. By using the code word "Mask 19" women can discreetly inform pharmacists that they should alert the authorities.

However, for the Solidarité Femmes Fédération Nationale (National Women's Solidarity Federation) it has been a challenge to bring people working in drug stores up to speed on such a complex situation. "Pharmacists were worried about their new roles", says Marion Ghibaudo, from the federation.

"They cannot become experts in a few days. They needed some advice on training and listening to the victims with empathy - that's half the work when facing a victim of abuse, who's frightened, who doesn't know what to do."

One family lawyer who specializes in family matters thinks that the situation is deteriorating. Isabelle Steyer has seen an increase in the number of women calling her since the lockdown began.

She has around 15 new clients each day: either fresh cases of abuse or previous clients reporting that violence has returned to a relationship. "The lockdown has become an additional weapon for abusers," says Steyer.

"When this is over, we'll find out what strategies the abusers had on women to make them quiet. We'll have 'surprises' when this ends. We will hear women speak out. Or we won't - and we'll have to look for missing bodies."

France already had a high rate of domestic violence before the lockdown measures were brought in. There were more than 200,000 reports of women being abused at home in 2019 while more than 120 women were killed in the same year.

The government has acknowledged there has been a rise in the number of cases of domestic abuse during the past six weeks of lockdown. But for those working to protect victims, the more worrying figure is the one that will never be known, the number of cases that have not and will not be reported.