The Island Council's Governing Council held this Wednesday has approved the composition of the joint commission of the agreement between the Canary Islands Institute of Equality (ICI) and the Island Council of Lanzarote for the development of the Social System for Prevention and Comprehensive Protection of Victims of Gender Violence on the island.
During the meeting of this body, which has already started operating this Wednesday, the director of the Canary Islands Institute of Equality (ICI), Kika Fumero, and the Minister of Social Welfare of the Cabildo, Marcos Antonio Bergaz, reviewed the main actions planned to prevent and address the consequences of gender violence throughout this year within the framework of said agreement, which provides for a joint investment of 3,453,013.89 euros until 2022.
This agreement, signed last November by the president of the Cabildo, María Dolores Corujo, and the Minister of Social Rights, Noemí Santana, contemplates actions and measures over a period of four years to prevent gender violence and assist victims of this macho violence.
As stated in the financial sheet of the multi-year agreement, this year 852,614.09 euros will be allocated, of which the ICI will contribute 447,585.81 euros. It will be up to the commission to set the basic lines of these measures, monitor compliance with the agreement and introduce possible changes.
Analyze "where the system may be faltering"
During the meeting, the actions that are being carried out within the framework of this agreement by the Island Corporation, the needs detected and the resources currently available for comprehensive social assistance for women victims of gender violence were presented.
The director of the Canary Islands Institute of Equality, Kika Fumero, explained the importance of maintaining a coordinated action with each island council in order to know the needs and particularities of each island as well as analyze in depth, "where the system may be faltering, provide a solution and, of course, continue to grow."
For its part, the ICI reported on the status of the VIOGEN agreement, the data protection projects, the regulations for centers and services of the Canary Islands System for Attention to Victims of Gender Violence; the funds planned by the State, the new measures implemented by the ICI such as the website dalaalarma, the redvican application and the gender violence guide and those planned for this year.
"In Lanzarote alone, ten cases are registered per week"
"Gender violence is a scourge, a daily attack on the rights of half of the population," declared the president of the Cabildo, María Dolores Corujo, after the joint commission was established. "In Lanzarote alone, ten cases are registered per week, more than one episode per day, and no responsible administration can stand idly by in the face of such a situation", she added.
Corujo reiterated the Cabildo's commitment to fighting violence against women, "especially through training and prevention, but also by addressing the devastating family and personal situations caused by these aggressions."
Of the total budget of 3,453,013 euros for these actions over the next four years, 1,790,343 will be contributed by the Canary Islands Institute of Equality and the rest by the Cabildo. These resources will be used especially to provide staff, training and resources to shelters and support services.
Similarly, the Emergency Device for Battered Women (DEMA) will be reinforced in Lanzarote, which will be staffed by specialized personnel and will operate in coordination with social services, the State Security Forces and Corps and emergency and health services. The DEMA will also be responsible for providing advice, assistance and support to women victims of gender violence and the direct family members dependent on them.
According to the Cabildo, the network of Information, Guidance and Advice Services and Centers, as well as comprehensive and interdisciplinary care and intervention and temporary shelter resources for women and minors at risk, will also be reinforced in Lanzarote. All of this will be accompanied by training actions for the staff that attends to the victims and prevention and awareness campaigns.
