Dozens of women – victims of violence leave their family home

An increase in complaints of incidents of gender and domestic violence has been recorded recently on the SOS Hotline 15900, while the number of women who are forced to leave their families in order to save their lives and to be accommodated in safe houses is also significant. according to a relevant announcement of the Ministry of Labor

According to the available data, in the first half of 2021 the SOS Line 15900 received more than 4 thousand calls, of which 2,869 calls were related to incidents of violence, while more than 50 women – victims of violence who experienced tragic moments during quarantine in their own house and had to be transported with their children urgently to emergency accommodation before being admitted to our hostels, were hosted in places offered by the Hotel Chamber of Greece.

Specifically, during the first quarantine the Hotel Chamber of Greece  hosted 23 women with 20 children, while during the second quarantine (from November 2020 to mid-May 2021) the Chamber offered free accommodation and meals to 33 women with 29 children. It is noted that the Smile of the Child offered free examinations to children, while the Hellenic Forensic Medicine Society (HFMS) offered examinations to victims of violence.

What happened during the quarantine period

The Deputy Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, responsible for Demographic Policy and the Family, Maria Syregela, met with the President of the Hotel Chamber of Greece Alexandros Vasilikos and the President of the Hellenic Forensic Medicine Society Grigoris Leon and thanked them for their help. to women – victims of violence. “Both the Chamber and the HFMS were on the side of the women who were abused and who had to leave the scene of the violence immediately in order not to be in danger,” said Ms. Syregela.

During the quarantine, the women were first accommodated in the rooms offered by the Chamber and then after the necessary medical examinations, some were transferred to our hostels, while others chose to be transferred to a relative or friend.

“The State is by the side of all the victims of violence and there is not a single woman that dials 15900 and is not transferred to safe accommodation,” said Ms. Syregela, emphasizing that only last month (July 2021) 63 women with 62 children were staying in our hostels. .

For his part, the president of the Hotel Chamber Alexandros Vasilikos stated that “in every difficult problem, in every challenge, the real force to move forward is within us, in what we really are and in the values ​​we serve over time and consistently. Hospitality and solidarity are in the DNA of the hotel industry. That is why the Chamber is stable and fully committed, part of the great collective effort to tackle domestic violence and eliminate the unacceptable phenomenon that is a black mark on our culture. ”

The president of the HFMS, Grigoris Leon, stressed: “It is particularly important that in unprecedented circumstances, the State created a shield of protection for the victims of domestic violence, trusting the scientists as well. The intention of the medical examiners who have the appropriate training and experience for the certification of physical and sexual abuse, is to continue the good cooperation that was created during the quarantine period, so that we, on our part, continue to support such initiatives. ” .