The coordinator of the SOS service of the …IZ KRUGA – VOJVODINA Organization, Ivana Zelic, gave a speech at the round – table meeting with the ombudsman of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina titled Trusting the Institutions – To Whom to Report Violence and Abuse? The meeting was held on 7th June 2021. in the Blue Room of the Novi Sad City Assembly, at 10:30 A.M.
It was organized to view the problem as a whole, to deliver mutual conclusions and suggestions for improvement and adequate protection of human rights as well as the rights of a child.
Ivana Zelic spoke about the accessibility of the service to women with disabilities, understanding the context of the violence towards the women with disabilities, and about the important actions when giving support in the situation of violence, risk factors i.e. things that we need to know when we support women with disabilities and the way the institutions should act after the violence had been reported.
– Women with disabilities face all types of violence just like the ones without disabilities with one discrepancy: the violence they endure is often fogged with myths, prejudice, and baseless assumptions about the disability. The villains additionally scare women with disabilities by threatening them with institutionalization or with taking children away from them – says Ivana Zelic.
In recent years the rise in the number of violent acts has been identified. Undeveloped procedures, insufficient and inadequate cooperation between competent institutions (social welfare, health care, educational, and judiciary system) is named significant problems in providing timely and complete protection against violence.
The participants of the round – table meeting emphasized the importance of the role media has while reporting professionally and ethically, which can notably help to educate the public. They pointed out the need for a positive media influence, avoiding sensational reporting about the victims of violence. Each person’s right to privacy, honoring the personal dignity, physical and mental integrity of each individual, must not be jeopardized by unscrupulous media releases and by the irresponsibility of the institutions.
The participants of the round – table discussion were the representatives of all relevant state authorities, institutions, establishments, and organizations, including the representatives of the police, prosecution, courts, social welfare institutions, health and educational departments, media, and civil society representatives. They concluded that promoting trust in institutions for achieving, improving, and protecting human and children’s rights will be beneficial for strengthening society as a whole.
