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Description
The main activities of the project, which the promoter will implement in the Bratislava and Prešov regions, are:
1. Capacity building and counselling for women experiencing violence in partnerships, expansion of specialised services for victims of sexual violence and support services for children
2. Therapeutic and support groups for women who have experienced partner and sexual violence and trauma
3. Awareness campaign on stalking, cyberstalking and technological security
4. Awareness-raising campaign on gender-based violence
5. Education for the professional public aimed at raising awareness of gender-based violence
Gender-based violence against women and their children is one of the most severe human rights violations. Eliminating its causes leads to the improvement of the position of women in all areas of their lives. In this sense, The promoter considers the presented project to be sovereignly focused on the development of gender equality and on the improvement of the position of women in society. Counselling will reflect on the specifics of individual vulnerable groups of women, as well as other activities will be available to all women regardless of age, race, religion, disability. Procurement of services within the project will be transparent and anti-corruption.
Summary of project results
In addition to expanding and providing standard services for women experiencing gender-based violence and their children, the project focused on the following issues and challenges:
The problem of stalking and cyberstalking has not been systematically addressed in Slovakia yet and there has been no widespread awareness of these forms of violence. Women and their surroundings, as well as the professional public, have had and continue to have problems identifying and addressing them. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly increased the number of cases of violence against women, including stalking and cyberstalking. We have encountered increasingly sophisticated ways of misusing digital technologies to control and monitor current and former partners/wives or women who have rejected men. We perceived that at the same speed that these forms of violence are spreading, awareness of them and of ways to effectively fight back, to stop the perpetrators definitively and to achieve justice, is not spreading at the same rate. The activity responded to the fact that gender-based violence against women and girls is changing and evolving in the context of the use of technology, and that perpetrators can cause multiple harms through technology. The project has responded to this serious problem not only through the services we provide, but also through extensive awareness raising and skills development, i.e. training for the professions. At the same time, we have carried out campaigning and awareness-raising activities in these areas.
The second problem the project addressed was the less visible and therefore more difficult to identify and prove forms of violence, namely psychological and economic violence. The campaign targeting these forms of violence responded to women''s low awareness that violence against women is broader than just physical violence and that even in these cases it is violence.
Overall, the project aimed to empower women, increase awareness of violence, and support systemic change through education and advocacy.
Empowerment and Support Groups: These were organized as two main courses:1. Empowering Self-Defense for Women: A feminist-focused self-defense course addressing responses to various risks, including boundary violations, sexual harassment, and assault. 2. TRE Groups: Support sessions aimed at helping survivors process and cope with the trauma of violence, strengthening their sense of safety.
Counseling and Advocacy: Free counseling and advocacy services were offered, in collaboration with a law firm, to address emerging issues from campaigns.
Violence Documentation and Mapping: A pilot initiative mapped individual cases of violence, visually documenting the course of clients'' experiences.
Awareness Campaigns and Education:
- Stalking and Cyberstalking Campaign: Increased crisis line calls and outreach, supported by media and social media engagement. The campaign had a long-lasting impact, including an event at Slovakia’s largest shopping center and a brochure publication.
- Psychological and Economic Violence Campaign: Helped women recognize and address these forms of violence in their lives.
- Professional Education: Provided training on stalking, cyberstalking, and economic violence to build systemic understanding among professionals.
Within the project counseling and support services were provided to 429 clients, primarily women and their children affected by gender-based violence. Furthermore, awareness and education campaigns were presented within the project. One of the campaign was installed in the shopping centre and ran across 30 digital screens. Thanks to campaigns there was an increase in clients, particularly women impacted by stalking and cyberstalking.
In the group support initiatives, 75 women participated, gaining essential skills and support. Project promoter set up 10 support groups and organized 62 sessions for women who had either experienced violence or were at risk.