A joint meeting was held today with members of Local Coordination Mechanisms for protection from domestic violence, violence against women and gender-based violence. At this meeting, the Regulation on Local Coordination Mechanisms for protection from domestic violence, violence against women and gender-based violence, as well as the Administrative Instruction for determining the procedure for providing services from the emergency fund for the needs of victims during their stay in police stations, were presented and discussed.

In his opening speech, the Acting Minister of Justice, Blerim Sallahu, said it was an important moment of how our country, society and our communities cooperate to stop the violence and to protect the dignity of every person.

“For the first time, the local level has officially reported for its work to the central level. This is happening in the framework of the implementation of a legal obligation, and is the result of an effort by the government and institutions to give the local level coordination mechanisms a clear, structured, and binding role”, said Minister Sallahu.

He added that, according to the regulation, the tasks and responsibilities of the local coordination mechanism include identification of needs to support victims, coordination of policies and services, drafting action plans, collecting and analyzing data, and raising awareness for zero tolerance towards violence.

The minister went on to add that the alteration of the social norms is best addressed when there is synchrony between the law, practice, and social culture. According to him, the citizens of Kosovo have a golden opportunity to make the country an example of a protective system functioning in practice, not only in paper.

“When local mechanisms report to the central level, they send a clear message to society: we will not allow the problem to remain silent. We will not allow victims to remain isolated. We are a nation that faces the truth and wants to build the path towards a family, a community, a society, where violence has no place”, concluded Minister Sallahu, encouraging further cooperation for a more just, equal and safer society.

The Head of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo, Cornelia Taylor, also gave an introductory speech during this meeting, held within the framework of the Global Campaign “16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence”, while the co-drafter and Political Advisor, Vlora Limani Hajnuni, presented the new regulation that was followed by discussions of the local mechanism’s representatives.