Shafaq News/ The General Directorate to combat violence against women in the Kurdistan Region, in coordination with the United Nations Population Fund, held a ceremony launching an app for women affected by domestic violence and abuse on Thursday.
On the sidelines of the ceremony, the Minister of Interior, Rebar Ahmed, said, "the approach of the Kurdish Government aims to support women to participate in the decision-making process and all fields," adding that "thousands of violence cases have been addressed through the hotline of the Ministry of Interior."
The Minister added that "this project of the United Nations is important because it will expedite procedures to reach the victims very quickly and without complicating the problem."
The "safeyou" application project is the first of its kind in Iraq; it will connect people who experience violence or abuse with the hotline to report any incidents.
The app will also help create documentation about incidents, including location, time, and contact information for potential witnesses.
In 2020, at least 25 women were murdered, 38 others committed suicide, 67 self-immolated, 10,370 lawsuits were filed, and 125 sexual assaults were recorded, according to General Directorate to Combat Violence Against Women.
In 2011, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) passed Domestic Law No. 8, the Law against Domestic Violence in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, which calls for the creation of women's shelters. Kurdistan has some local NGOs permitted to run and maintain shelters for women fleeing violence.
In addition, the KRG, aided by the United Nations agencies, particularly the United Nations Development Assistance Framework (UNDAF), planned a national strategy to confront violence against women )2017-2027).
