As part of the program area of the Norwegian Financial Mechanism SK 09: Domestic and gender-based violence arose a Partnership Project Civic Association „HOME – DUHA“ (RAINBOW), Bratislava’s regional government and civil society gateway to life. The result of this collaboration is a new safe female house called „DUHA“ (RAINBOW) and a Safe female House „Brana do zivota“(Gate to Life) , which helped the project to raise in quality and improve their standard of accommodation and counseling services.
What is a woman’s safe house (BZD)?
Safe woman’s house is a place that provides assistance to women and children who had been victims of violence.
Whom serves BZD?
• women experiencing violence
• mothers with children who are victims of violence or are witnesses ofa violent parental relationship
What gives me BZD?
• Accommodation,
• crisis intervention,
• psychological counseling, diagnosis and psychotherapy.
• social counseling,
• basic legal advice,
• Social assistance and help.
• Prevention.
What is domestic violence?
Domestic violence constitutes not only one occasional incident. This is a repeated, long-lasting violence, aiming to humiliate, dominate or oppress another being, and the intimidation and causing fear – verbal, physical and emotional abuse. Domestic violence doesn’t dependent on age, social status, education, ethnicity and religion, also not on temperament as well as the mental equipment of the aggressor and the victim.
Different kinds of violence
• Physical violence (hitting, hurting, kicking, slapping, piercing weapon)
• Sexual violence (sexual intercourse enforced by violence, sex uncomfortable. Practices, forced into sex. Contact with someone else, denying sex)
• Psychological violence (causing fear, intimidation, humiliation, accusations, insults, jealousy, intimidation, threats of bodily harm, death, such as children. „I will take the children“).
• Economic violence (financial restriction, obstruction of earnings, taking the money),
• Social violence (isolation, prohibition of contact with relatives, friends, going to work)
Test –am I experiencing violence? / Your partner to you:
• Isolates from family, friends, resources?
• humiliated and disparages?
• possessively extreme jealousy?
• monitor and control you?
• enforces you to a special activity or to special rules?
• threaten you, intimidate you?
• force you into sexual activities or sexual intercourse against your will?
• Do you feel threat to life and health?
• have there been any kind of violence from your partner in the past (in the family, among others)?
If you did answer on a number of questions with yes, it is possible that you live in a violent relationship.
What to do I am experiencing violence?
• Talk to someone you trust. Bully feels strong because of that you are the only one who know about it.
• You are not to blame for the violence because the responsibility is always the one who commits it.
• You and your children have a right to live a safe and fulfilling life without violence!
• Violence does never stop on by its own. On the contrary, it tends to constantly increase.
• If you are injured, take the medical treatment and contact the police.
• If you decide to leave, find a suitable safe place, take with you: your money, documents, important documents (birth certificates of children, marriage certificate ..), credit cards, keys, medicines …
• Contact any crisis counseling for women crisis centers, on a toll-free line.
National hotline for women experiencing violence
0800 212 212
Safe woman’s house DÚHA
0915 166 663
Safe woman’s house Gate to Life
02/6241 0469 0915 439 245
GATE TO LIFE, n.g.o
Crisis Center / Safe female House Gate to Life provides social services since 2001. We offer asylum housing for victims of domestic violence, mothers with children and pregnant women. First step of a client to a crisis center as well as the arrival to safe place where a woman can think about how they will proceed to go on and how to deal with their situation.
The gaol of Gate to life n.g.o is to sensitize the public on domestic violence, and to improve the possibility for victims of violence and find new support options. We therefore strive to:
• highlight the seriousness of the issue of domestic violence,
• to uphold the law deal with domestic violence,
• inform the helping professions who may come into contact with victims of domestic violence, like: (doctors, policemen, civil servants etc.) and how they should proceed in that kind of situation.
• establish better communication between helping institutions, police authorities, courts and other stakeholders.
