In Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), there are more and more victims of domestic violence, who seek help under the roof of safe houses, the financing of which is still not fully defined.
In our country, there are several safe houses for the accommodation of victims of violence. They mostly rely on financial support from lower levels of government or foreign financiers from whom they receive money through the implementation of projects.
One of these is located in Tuzla, and operates under the auspices of the Center for Therapy and Rehabilitation “Viva Women”, and according to the experiences there, the number of victims is continuously increasing, especially since the period of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As of 2020, we have roughly 30 percent more users. Annually, on average, there are 100 new victims who need accommodation. On the other hand, most women do not seek accommodation and we currently have more than 280 of them who are in so-called outpatient treatment. They come to therapy and legal counseling because of violence,” Jasna Zezevic stated, director of the Center for Therapy and Rehabilitation of Viva Women.
With the help of the expert team operating in the Tuzla safe house, i.e. social workers, psychotherapists, and lawyers, the residents begin to walk a new path in life. It is often strewn with thorns, especially in the context of new integration into society.
“Thanks to cooperation with institutions, in 20 percent of cases we succeed in economically empowering the victims of violence. However, it is difficult to integrate them because of housing. We are now discussing the implementation of a large project related to social housing with the City Administration of Tuzla and several other local communities. We will try to provide at least one temporary apartment for women who are leaving the safe house,” Zecevic pointed out.
The Tuzla safe house was built 22 years ago, and Viva Women did not have the money for its adaptation. The urgent need for this was recognized by UNHCR and CRS, who renovated this and four other safe houses through the project.
“One of the important things for us is that people who run away from their home because of some trauma, have a safe house where they can settle down. The Viva Women Association always has an open door for refugees, as well as displaced persons who were fleeing trauma and who had access to their services,” said Lucie Gagne, representative of the UNHCR in BiH, Klix.ba reports.
