A new house to show violence the door
We support women who are victims of abuse by providing them with a safe haven and the resources to start a new life.
A safe haven
The results
Beds available
Women on the path to financial independence
Counselling sessions held
Months average stay
2016/2021
Concluded
In collaboration with: Il Cerchio delle Relazioni
THE CHALLENGE: violence against women is a priority
According to the UN, violence against women is one of the most persistent, widespread and devastating human rights violations in the world.
Too many remain subject to rape, domestic violence, various types of mental abuse and the most extreme form of violence, femicide.
A study commissioned by the United Nations in 2018 reported that 58% of murders of women in 2017 were committed by a partner, a former partner or a family member.
The number becomes even more disturbing when considering the number of women who remain silent: in Italy alone, less than 5% of victims resort to a women’s shelter.
Women stay in violent relationships because they often have nowhere to turn, because they lack the financial independence to care for their children, themselves, or out of fear of even more violent repercussions.
Women’s shelters respond to these needs. Centres that provide free mental and legal assistance and financial support are a way out of dangerous domestic situations, especially when accommodation is needed in safe houses with undisclosed addresses.
The Italian average is 0.05 women’s shelters for every 10,000 inhabitants. A far cry from the objectives set out in Istanbul by the Council of Europe’s Convention on preventing and combating gender-based violence, which foresaw twenty times that number.
THE GOAL: to guarantee the protection of women survivors of violence
The project aims to provide safe housing for women survivors of domestic violence.
The goal is to increase the number of emergency shelters in Liguria to accommodate women and children and provide financial and mental support, as well as cross-cultural mediation services for the women who are foreigners.
OUR PROJECT: to create environments where women can independently set out their life plans
The project, A Safe Haven, was actualised with the renovation of “Casa Elisa”, a safe house owned by the cooperative “Il Cerchio delle Relazioni”, partner of our project, while we finalise a dwelling to soon become a new women’s home-shelter to restore hope in those needing a safe place.
We ensure that women across all our existing facilities have access to mental health support services and the specialised assistance of pedagogists for their children.
Additionally, we support vulnerable women in becoming financially independent by contributing towards their monthly expenses and initial rent payments.
To support foreign women who are survivors of violence, we have implemented a network of services with the support of cross-cultural mediators who, alongside linguistic assistance also deal in legal matters and provide a sense of familiarity and understanding, which are indispensable for regaining the confidence to rebuild one’s life.
Through A Safe Haven, we wanted to extend our support to women survivors of violence in Liguria by coupling the project alongside that of Red Shoes on Tour.
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