IRAQ: Iraqi Women Come Together Fighting Violence Against Women

The Ministry of State for Women Affairs agreed on Thursday with the Ministries of Health, Labor and Interior and the United Nations Fund for Population, as well as civil society organizations to implement the qualitative social program to combat violence against women.

The Minister of State for Women Affairs Ibtihal al-Zaidi told AKnews that her ministry held a consultative meeting to discuss the annual operational plan to combat violence against women.

"The plan was developed by the United Nations Fund in cooperation with a number of government institutions and civil organizations, with the participation of the Health, Labour and Interior ministries."

"The plan focused on achieving three main objectives that is the promotion of institutional, technical and operational capacities of the concerned ministries and local non-governmental organizations, in order to ensure the provision of services for survivors of violence towards women."

"The plan includes strengthening the capacity of non-governmental organizations concerned in defending equality and women's rights and reproductive health, as well as promoting women's empowerment and their participation in peace-building and development of Iraq, along with the integration of life skills and psychosocial support and human rights within the non-curricular activities in secondary education."

"The goals of the plan would be achieved through several activities represented by setting up seminars, conferences, media awareness, training and rehabilitation of staff in the ministries that are relevant to the socially abused women such as health, interior, and labor," in addition to "networking the civil society organizations at the national level and emphasising on organizing a series of training workshops for 200 teachers in 50 secondary schools for males and 50 for females, and the opening and rehabilitation of internal departments within approximately 100 hospitals and health centers to receive the victims of violence across the country."

Zaidi had called on Wednesday the Committee of Experts of the Ministers Council in charge of writing the law of protection from domestic violence to speed up the development of the law to protect women.

The activist women also called last Monday to form a feminist front from the leaders in the legislative and executive branches, so that it would be a strong defender of women's rights.