Ministry of Health, Labour and Social Protection is to approve two working guidelines to improve the response of health and social assistance systems in cases of domestic violence. Domestic violence victims will thus benefit from improved services provided by health and social assistance professionals, who will respond more effectively to identifying, referring and solving the cases of violence.  

 ‘Preventing and combating domestic violence is a priority area for the Ministry, constantly being found on its agenda. Although the Republic of Moldova has made significant progress in recent years to improve legislation and ensure access to quality services for victims, note that victims’ assistance and protection mechanisms need to be further improved, including to ensure a systemic and coordinated response of the Government to this scourge. In this context, the new guidelines proposed for validation will significantly contribute to improving the mechanism for preventing and combating domestic violence.’ said Lilia Pascal, Head of Gender Equality Policy Department, MHLSP, during a public event organised in Chisinau to validate the guidelines.

 The sectoral guidelines on the response of health and social assistance professionals were developed on the basis of the Global Standards and Essential Services Package for Women and Girls Subject to Violence (ESGs) and represent an important step in bringing the Government’s response to this phenomenon in line with international standards and best practices in the field.

 ‘We need to develop a sustainable system to help domestic violence victims. Similar guidelines are adapted in a number of countries in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, and are part of the UNFPA global effort to prevent and combat gender-based violence,’ said Nurgul Kinderbaeva, Gender Program Specialist, UNFPA Regional Office for Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

 According to official statistics, one in four women in the Republic of Moldova was subject to a form of violence during her lifetime, and domestic violence is still a growing phenomenon in the country. In this context, the review of the Guidelines on the Response of Health and Social Assistance Professionals is an important component of the National Strategy to Prevent and Combat Violence against Women and Domestic Violence for 2018-2023.

 ‘The development of these guidelines was necessary in relation to the implementation of the new law adopted by Parliament in July 2016. They aim at improving the quality of the response of health and social assistance professionals in cases of domestic violence. The guidelines were reviewed and adapted on the basis of a victim-centered approach and their right to a life free of violence,’ said Natalia Vilcu, Executive Director of Women’s Law Center.

 The summing-up meeting ‘Sectoral Guidelines on the Response of Health and Social Assistance Professionals in Cases of Domestic Violence’ was organised by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Social Protection in partnership with Women’s Law Center, with the support of United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).