Quang Nam: Training on prevention of gender-based violence against persons with disabilities for stakeholders

Due to many objective and subjective factors, persons with disabilities, especially women and girls with disabilities, are a group at high risk of gender-based violence. According to the Impact Assessment Report on gender-based violence against women and girls with disabilities of the project "Strengthening opportunities and enhancing the status of persons with disabilities – phase 2", a significant proportion of women and girls with disabilities have experienced gender-based violence in various forms. This report also points out that the skills of stakeholders to support women and girls with disabilities experiencing gender-based violence still have certain limitations; inter-sectoral coordination to prevent gender-based violence has not yet been highly effective.

In order to enhance knowledge and skills to support persons with disabilities experiencing gender-based violence for stakeholders, on June 23-24, 2022, the Action to the Community Development Institute (ACDC) organized a training course on “Prevention of gender-based violence against persons with disabilities for stakeholders”. Ms. Doan Thi Hoai Nhi, Deputy Director of Department of Labor - Invalids and Social Affairs, Head of the Project Management Board attended and delivered the opening speech.

The training course had the participation of 52 medical staff, legal aid/judicial assistance, Women's Union, officials of Labor - Invalids and Social Affairs, Association of Persons with Disabilities at provincial and district levels/ communes of Que Son, Phuoc Son, Bac Tra My and Nui Thanh districts. Throughout the training session, the trainees were equipped with basic knowledge and skills on preventing gender-based violence against persons with disabilities; special focus on process and case management skills, networking.

Mr. M. H, Deputy Head of the Justice Department of Que Son District shared: “Actually, in Que Son, there is a legal consulting team, when there is a case, we still go for advice and support. However, we do it for an administrative nature, so applying the law is the main thing. When participating in this training course, I found that the highlight of it is that we are not only rigidly legal but also socially inclined to human psychology. This is very useful knowledge. If I go to the local field in the future, I will definitely apply to work with people easily with more love.”

Ms. N.T.D, Legal Assistant at the State Legal Aid Center of Quang Nam Province shared: “The training is really meaningful to me. As an assistant, I have also worked with many subjects, many cases, but following experience in a general way. This training helped me better understand the process of taking a case. Through the sharing of trainers and trainees in the class, I learned a lot of practical experiences. I will definitely apply the knowledge learned in this training course to my current job.”

Talking to the trainer, Ms. N.T.B, Head of Tam Tien Commune Health Station, Nui Thanh District Medical Center confided: “At the Tam Tien commune health station, there is a shelter room, this is the address for women who are experiencing violence or have any problems who need a safe place to stay temporarily. I am the one who directly talked to them. However, it's just a consoling/confidential talk, not as methodical as this class. This is the first time I have been trained on this subject. If I had gone sooner, the cases would have come to me and I would have handled them better. Thank you for the training that gave me the opportunity to learn more knowledge and skills when working with cases in need of support in my locality.”

At the end of the training course, Ms. T.T.T.L, Specialist of Social Work Center of Quang Nam province also said: “The training course was very meaningful, attracting the whole class to participate enthusiastically. The plan, program, and content are very suitable for social workers like me.”

The activity is part of the project "Strengthening opportunities and enhancing the status of persons with disabilities – phase 2" funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The training course is the first step to form linkages between relevant units in each district to strengthen coordination, share experiences, support and handle cases of gender-based violence in which the victims are persons with disabilities.