Abazović meets with NGOs working in field of combating violence against women

Licensed and credible NGOs working in the field of combating domestic violence must be a reliable partner of the Government of Montenegro in solving the problem of violence against women and children, said Deputy Prime Minister Dritan Abazović at the meeting with representatives of NGOs working in the field of combating violence against women and children.

Budislavka Mira Saveljić, Executive Director of the Safe Women's House, Nataša Međedović, Executive Coordinator at the SOS Hotline Nikšić, Ana Jaredić, Coordinator of victim support services at the Women's Rights Center, and Biljana Zeković, Executive Director of SOS Hotline Podgorica were present at the meeting.

Representatives of NGOs informed DPM Abazović about their activities, the annual number of calls, emphasising their work on improving the legal and strategic framework and harmonising it with international standards, but also the problems they have encountered in the past few years.

They pointed out certain problems of structural discrimination during the distribution of budget funds that were allocated for this area of social protection in the previous period.

DPM Abazović pointed out that the intention is to strengthen institutions, but also to promote and preserve European values in the protection of women's human rights so that the bad experience that Montenegro has with domestic violence shall not be repeated. In that sense, the Deputy Prime Minister stressed that the state has an obligation to work together with credible and recognised NGO partners to provide effective support to women and children who are victims of domestic violence.

Praising their work, Abazović pointed out that these organisations will have full political support in the coming period to solve existing problems in order to improve the system of protection of victims of domestic violence.

The meeting noted that only functional institutions can tackle domestic violence against women and children.