A workshop for members of Senaki City Hall Interdepartmental Commission of the Municipality on the Prevention of Violence against Women and/or Domestic violence, Protection and Assistance to Victims of Violence was held.
During the meeting, a dialogue was held on the practical aspects of the commission work, several acute cases were discussed and a case management strategy was drawn up.
According to the participants, the commission has great potential for preventing violence against women/domestic violence, as well as for providing victims with timely and adequate assistance. This is due to the fact that this mechanism is represented by intersectoral groups; resources are joined and coordinated.
The project is implemented with the support the Equality Fund (Canada)
Handing over the phone is considered as assistance in our project, because its absence often creates many problems.
Handing over a phone helps to empower women (using the phone they can find information about vacancies or daily work), protection and assistance to victims of violence using the SOS button, communication according to various needs.
In short, necessity of phone is obvious today. That is why our organization distributes the phones according to certain criteria. Over the past three months, 6 women have received phones: in Tskaltubo, Chokhatauri, Kobuleti, Samtredia and Terjola (two women received them here).
In addition, three of these six women spent two weeks in our rehabilitation center and received comprehensive support.
The project is implemented with the support of the Urgent Action Fund for Women's Human Rights
October was especially busy in Women Support Centers. The meeting participants highlighted specific cases and spoke about the combined reasons of violence. Almost all groups highlighted the negative consequences of early marriage, which is an echo of the tragedy that happened in Sagarejo. Participants emphasized the need for education and informing.
“It is necessary to raise awareness, we need to work more on stereotypes,” the participants believe and talk about holding an information campaign.
As a result of the work of mobilizers, five new cases were identified in October. Beneficiaries will use all services of the und “Sukhumi”.
The project is implemented with the support of the organization Brot
für die Welt - Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst (Germany)
About 80 boxes arrived from Tbilisi - clothes, toys, shoes, school supplies.
Employees of the Women Fund “Sukhumi” packed gifts for several days. The gifts were selected by age and season. We received this gift from the organization Women for Justice (donor - OrphanGrainFoundation).
Our organization did charity work independently. And now we have received serious support and will distribute clothes as gifts to the beneficiaries of the rehabilitation center, activists of Women Support Centers and members of mutual-support groups.
The beneficiaries of our rehabilitation center expressed their gratitude:
“A gift is always welcome and timely. At the same time, it has high quality and is very practical. It will be useful for both me and my boys.”
“My children and I often have problems with clothing. Good, kind people help us. We are very pleased with this gift."
The project is implemented with the support of the organization Brot
für die Welt - Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst (Germany)
Meetings with the psychologist of the Women Fund “Sukhumi” were held in Women Support Centers of Vani, Kobuleti, Chokhatauri, Zugdidi and Tsalenjikha municipalities. The meetings were held mainly in a group format - there were also online meetings and individual meetings based on the needs of children.
The main topic of the meetings was: “What are the characteristics of a rapist.” It was noted that perhaps most of them did not have sufficient support and upbringing in childhood, they had low self-esteem, and were socially isolated. When a person's self-satisfaction is low, he needs emotional support from others.
The main focus of the psychologist's meetings was family relationships, the relationship between husband and wife... The conversation on these topics turned out to be interesting for the meeting participants.
The project is implemented with the support of the organization Brot
für die Welt - Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst (Germany)
Initiative, active mutual support groups were created in 10 municipalities.
Project assistant met group members in Tskaltubo, Chokhatauri, Zugdidi (village Khurcha) and Vani municipalities, and held an online meeting with the Bagdati group.
Case related to early marriage was discussed in Tskaltubo, in Chokhatauri they talked about the problems of rural women. Bagdati group talked about more effective assistance to violence victims, and in Khurcha, the active participation of local government was emphasized. Psychologist held an ordinary meeting with Vani women group.
other five municipalities - Senaki, Tsalenjikha, Samtredia, Terjola and Kobuleti - the group leaders held meetings themselves. Problems were identified everywhere (payment of alimony, housing or property cases), and advocacy is carried out in cooperation with local government. Group members want their work and results to be an example for other women.
The project is implemented with the support the Equality Fund (Canada)
The Women Fund “Sukhumi” held a round table in Kobuleti municipality with the participation of representatives of local referral entities (organized by the gender council of the municipality).
Participants talked about prevention of violence and protection of violence victims, discussed the current situation regarding domestic violence and issues of social cooperation.
The main emphasis was placed on partnership of local structures to solve the problem of domestic violence.
The project is implemented with the support of the organization Brot
für die Welt - Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst (Germany)
Gender, gender-based violence, identification of violence, communication with a child and referral stages, legal mechanisms and international documents, the role of teachers in violence prevention - these issues were discussed at a training held for teachers in Kutaisi, in the office of the Women Fund “Sukhumi”.
Participants represented 6 municipalities (Chokhatauri, Vani, Khoni, Zugdidi, Tskaltubo and Bagdati). They actively participated in the work process, discussions and shared their experiences with each other.
It was noted that the training participants will introduce gender approaches into their schools and will contribute to the destruction of stereotypes and the prevention of violence.
The project is implemented with the support of the organization Brot
für die Welt - Evangelischer Entwicklungsdienst (Germany)
The National Association of Local Authorities of Georgia (NALA), with the support of the United Nations Women's Organization and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, organized a national conference titled "Gender Equality Agenda at the Local Level: Main Challenges and Action Steps." Heads of municipalities, representatives from legislative and executive authorities, as well as international and local civil society organizations, participated in the high-level conference.
The representative of the Women's Fund "Sukhumi," Ekaterine Gamakharia, attended the conference. During the discussion, she emphasized the necessity to enhance the role of children's rights protection departments and mayors' representatives in villages. There is a need to strengthen the link between these entities to better inform women, introduce local policies tailored to their needs, and address issues of women at the local level. Additionally, she highlighted the importance of implementing effective mechanisms for the prevention and protection of domestic violence.
It is noteworthy that at the conclusion of the conference, with NALA's advocacy, five additional Georgian municipalities signed the European Charter on the Equality of Women and Men in Local Life. This brings the total to 26 self-governing units that have joined the charter thus far. This time, the self-governing units of Zugdidi, Zestaponi, Chokhatauri, Samtredia, and Baghdati joined the document, thereby affirming their willingness and support for the principles of gender equality in their municipalities.
