MSP praises Scottish Government's commitment to preventing violence against women
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MSP Maree Todd has praised the Scottish Government's commitment to preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls in Scotland.
Her comments coincide with the global 16 days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence campaign which started on Wednesday (November 25).
Caithness and Sutherland Women's Aid (CASWA) are among the organisations across the Highlands and Islands taking part in a joint initiative to raise awareness of gender-based violence and how it affects people in our local communities.
In recognition of the difficult and unprecedented climate, the theme of this year’s 16 days of activism is – Orange the World: Fund, Respond, Prevent, Collect – with a focus on Covid-19 response, recovery and renewal.
According to a recent Police Scotland report, in the year to date, 34,103 incidents of domestic abuse have been recorded in Scotland, up 7.6 per cent on the previous 12 months.
Commenting on the latest figures, Maree Todd MSP said: “The consequences of this pandemic have been grave and the latest figures which report an increase of domestic abuse incidents in Scotland, work to further highlight this.
“In a time where we are encouraging people to reduce their social interactions and stay at home, it is essential that we also support those in vulnerable situations, where home is not a safe place.
“From investing significant levels of funding in frontline services and bringing forward new legislation to implementing the Equally Safe strategy – the Scottish Government is determined to prevent and eradicate violence against women and girls in Scotland.”
The Scottish Government’s Equally Safe strategy highlights the need to prioritise prevention. The strategy has a strong focus on advancing gender equality and tackling the underlying attitudes that create the societal conditions for gender based violence to flourish.
Before the pandemic, figures from 2018-19 show 101 incidents of domestic abuse per 10,000 recorded in the Highland Council area.
The MSP said: “Whilst the figures of domestic abuse incidents in the Highlands may be lower than some areas of the country – this figure has more than doubled from 10 years ago. It’s also worth pointing out that this is only reported incidents – we know that countless cases go unreported.
“I would encourage anyone in the Highlands who is a victim of abuse to get in touch with some of the fantastic support services we have in place across the region. Please don’t suffer in silence. ”
Ms Todd added: “I was pleased to see the Scottish Government mark both the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and the global 16 days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence through a moving debate in Holyrood yesterday.”
This year CASWA have worked alongside 13 other organisations across the Highlands to develop a campaign targeting gender-based violence in rural areas.
The campaign has a joint hashtag – #ChangeHerStory – and the public are being encouraged to participate on social media and say what they would like to see changed for women and girls.
More information can be found on the CASWA Facebook page or website www.caswa.org.uk
For further support, contact:
- Scottish Domestic Abuse Helpline – freephone 0800 027 1234
- Inverness Women's Aid – 01463 220719
- Ross-shire Women's Aid – 01349 863568
- Lochaber Women's Aid – 01397 705734
- CASWA – 0345 408 0151
- RASASH (Rape and Sexual Abuse Service Highland) – 08088 010302
Related article:
Local group helps highlight 'taboo' topic of gender-based violence
