Council of Europe campaign to combat violence against women, including domestic violence

Local and regional action to prevent and combat violence against women

Speech by Britt-Marie Lövgren, Member of the Committee on Social Cohesion, Congress of Local and Regional Authorities, Council of Europe

Closing conference of the Council of Europe’s campaign on domestic violence against women Strasbourg, 10-11 June 2008

Ladies and Gentlemen!

My name is Britt-Marie Lövgren. I come from Umeå, a city with 112 000 inhabitants in the north of Sweden. In Umeå, just like in the whole of Europe, men’s violence to women was for a very long period an underestimated problem but the issue is now on the political agenda and I hope it will remain so and that the debate will be intensified.

According to the World Health Organization at least one out of every three women around the world has been beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused in her lifetime - with the abuser usually someone known to her. Men’s violence to women and children is a crime against human rights. It is an immense global social problem and the most extreme example of the prevailing imbalance of power in the relationship between women and men. Violence against women and their children is also a serious obstacle to equality between women and men.

To meet this problem, at least partly, in Umeå we have chosen a model which is based upon cooperation between authorities on different levels:  It’s a matter of bringing together health care experts from the regional level, social workers and volunteers from women’s shelters from the local level. The national level brings knowledge from the university and experts from the judicial system and the police. This is a good way of gathering competence. It is, I think, extremely important to professionalize this kind of activity. This must not be subjected to thoughts, beliefs and guesswork. The problems must be apparent, must be visible.

One issue in Sweden is that so many different actors have their own part of responsibility for this very major social problem. Every single actor is important and is doing a good job. But the lack of a comprehensive view has indeed been an obstacle. The natural conclusion was: cooperation between these actors in society is necessary. We call it the Centre against violence.

This model is unique for Sweden and probably also in most other countries. Basically, it is built up from an efficient reception service and a centre with all necessary competences – and different professional groups are available or can be made contact with through the centre.  This means access to psychologists and other medical staff, to social workers, to sociologists, to policemen and – when needed – access to different representatives from other parts of the judicial system.

The woman that has been exposed to violence must feel that when she can come to the centre she will get the help that she and her children need. She must also feel that her initiative won’t entail a big risk for them. Women and children only need to go to ONE place instead of going around all over the place. Women and children only need to give evidence ONCE, and it is all recorded and secured for future evidence, if necessary. This relieves them from having to relive the trauma every time they otherwise would have met new staff.

So, the centre has one part for children, one part for women and one part of the centre deals with men.

The most important issue as concerns the treatment of violent men is to ensure that they take responsibility for their actions. They have to understand that the entire responsibility for the violent actions lies with the person who carries them out. These men must give up their excuses and explanations for their violence; stop understating its importance and stop blaming the woman, for example, by stating that she provoked him to violence. Men must realise the consequences of their violence and stop frightening and damaging their families.

 

Serious social problems – and men’s violence to woman is for sure a serious problem – must be treated with knowledge and ability in order to be solved in a sensible and justified way. Resources are needed and resources must be disposed  - and it is a political task to get this done. A priority.

A matter of vital importance is that of housing. It’s not possible for the beaten woman to leave the violent man if this issue is not solved.

 

For many years now a women’s shelter, financed by the local taxpayers, has been run in Umeå by volunteers who built up an organisation to offer women and their children a temporary address. Men are not welcome to this shelter, and the women’s identity is protected. This has literally been a lifeline for many women.  The women’s shelter works together with the Centre against violence. The shelter also offers legal advice free of charge. This is made possible by volunteers, who are based at the Law school of Umeå university. There are also groups where one can meet and share experience to move forward, seminars for awareness-raising. The shelter offers a safe and friendly environment to the children who often join their mothers to live there temporarily.

Also, one night per week, the shelter offers advice and self-help groups specifically for those who have been victimised by incest. The shelter is closed for other visitors that night to ensure that the women can meet without the fear of being further victimised by shame and guilt.

We have also started working on issues of preventive work amongst young men, in the schools of our city. The young can meet in groups and discuss and question the predominant view on manhood/macho ideals and what it is to be a man. In this way we shift focus to where real change is needed. Young men can through this work change their values and grow up to be non-violent men.

In a new study from the University of Umeå in Sweden, the cost for one individual was calculated. In this case a man physically abused his female partner over a period of 20 years. Costs were summarised at approximately 250 000 euro. 

Measures that limit men’s violence to women are of course most important from a social and humanitarian point of view. But they are also profitable in an economic perspective. There are certainly reasons to remember and mention this often.

I would like to end by saying: Zero tolerance of violence is the only alternative.

A good democracy is worth nothing less.

Thank You for listening!!!

 In the year of 2006, the shelter had about 330 new women (who haven´t been in touch with the shelter earlier) who contacted the shelter for help in some way.

2007

In the year 2007, the shelter had contact with 350 women, 33 of these women were not from Sweden. (271 of these were new contacts.) Statistics on people who lived in the shelter 2007 were a total of 32 women and children 22.

Support talks at the shelter: a total of 1096

Support talks on the phone: a total of  1291

Parts of this includes:

111      for abuse

7 death threats

10 rapes

20 psychological abuses

Also, many questions on legal advise - at least 80 calls on these matters.

82 times when the shelter volunteers offers help and joins the women to police, court, hospital etc., if they are afraid to go themselves.