This regional seminar co-organised by the OSCE Secretariat Transnational Threats Department and Gender Section and UNFPA office in Minsk, aims to better understand, respond to and educate about the trend of domestic violence within the region with a specific focus on enhancing the response of non-traditional sector providers - actors involved in community policing.
The OSCE Gender Section and TNTD/ SPMU prepared an innovative project on addressing domestic violence through promoting a community policing approach within the region. This project is a part of a UNFPA lead project that has been implemented in the Republic of Belarus since 2012. This project is part of a bigger package agreed with the Belarusian authorities and coordinated by the CPC.
Moldova faces similar problems with domestic violence and has expressed interest to share experience with Belarus. Subthemes explored will include: the importance of community police as potential first responders to cases of domestic violence, lowering the barriers on victim reporting, setting up well functioning response mechanisms, and ensuring availability of adequate legal assistance. The output will be a set of recommendations for improving the cross sectorial response to addressing domestic violence in respective countries and in the whole region.