The Regional Secretary for Labour and Social Solidarity reiterated the Government's investment in actions to prevent and combat domestic violence. For that purpose, the Government implemented a set of measures, some of which are pioneer in the Portugal and have been recently acknowledged by the Attorney General’s Office.
Ana Paula Marques spoke, on behalf of the President of the Government of the Azores, during the opening of the Conference on Criminal Law on family crimes which takes place in Ponta Delgada on São Miguel Island until Saturday.
At the occasion, the Regional Secretary also emphasised the Psycho-Educational programme for aggressors “Contigo” (With You), which is promoted by the Social Work Institute and created under the Support Network for Women on São Miguel with the support of the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Delegation of the Directorate-General for Social Reinsertion in the Azores.
The innovative perspective, the belief in the possibility of rehabilitating aggressors in order to prevent their recurrence and the methodology to join the various entities involved in the fight against the violence phenomenon is, according to Ana Paula Marques, “a good practice” as it is being implemented in Cascais. This initiative is result of the meetings between the Azorean entities and the respective entities of that municipality which were promoted by the Domestic Violence Forum of the Municipality of Cascais.
According to the Regional Secretary for Labour and Social Solidarity, the Contigo programme, whose pilot project took place between November 2008 and May 2009, is already implemented in the Court District of Ponta Delgada, achieving “extremely positive results.”
Based on these results, the implementation of the Contigo Programme will be extended to the Court District of Ribeira Grande, and soon to the other islands of the archipelago.
The programme is expected to be implemented on Terceira, Faial and Graciosa by the end of the year, which represents an investment in the Rehabilitation of Aggressors and in the Prevention of Recurrences.
Moreover, the Government of the Azores is preparing an Intervention Programme addressed at children and youngsters, who are frequently the direct and indirect victims of domestic violence.
Enumerating the various actions proposed by the Government in favour of families, children and youngsters, Ana Paula Marques stressed the effort undertaken by the Azorean Government in their protection and the close collaboration with the local entities of the Ministries of Justice and of Internal Affairs.