Ref: 25/2020
Date: 14 June 2020
On Thursday, 10 June 2020, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) concluded a training course on “Protection and Intervention Mechanisms to Eliminate Violence Against Women”, with the participation of 4 youth groups active in central Gaza Strip governorate. PCHR resumed its training program after a haitus due to the corona virus pandemic. PCHR ensured that trainers and trainnes applied all safety and prevention standards during the 4-day training course (20 hours), which was held between 03 – 11 June 2020 , and was attended by 25 participants (male and female).
This training course is the third to be held in 2020, which provides capacity building for youth gourps on general human rights concepts, womens’ rights, gender-based violence, intervention and legal protection the mechanisms available to women, aiming to enable them to become advocates of those prinicples in their institutions and among their peers and provide the needed help and assistance to women who are victims of violence, leading towards promoting and enhancing respect for women’s rights and their roles in building society.
The training program tackled various topics corresponding with the needs of the targeted group, acquinting them with the general concepts of human rights and women’s rights in particular in addition to gender-based violence, its forms, causes and how to address it, intervention and legal protection mechanisms available to women who are victims of violence, Palestinian legislations and their role in protecting women, the national intervention system for victims of violence, and women’s political participation. The training sessions were executed under the supervision of PCHR’s specialized staff.
In conclusion of the course, PCHR organized a closing ceremony, where PCHR Director, Raji Sourani, pointed out the drastic consequences of violence on the individual, family, society and the state, stressing on women’s role in building and developing society, as it is not possible to talk a bout a society that enjoys human rights while women, who constitute more than its half, are are exposed to practices that degrade their dignity. Sourani also mentioned that Palestinian women have had numerous contributions to Palestinian society throughout history, bringing attention to the many-fold violence endured by Palestinian women, including the violence of the occupation and social violence. Sourani added that this training course focuses on women’s basic needs, and building participants’ capacities to respond to cases of violence against women and be advocates and protectors providing assistance, intervention and protection for women who are victims of violence, through expanding PCHR’s engagement with youth groups, to achieve a cohesive society that denounces all forms of violence.
Sourani pointed out “PCHR considers these training courses to youth an investment in building their capacity and knowledge and refine their skills to effect real change in popular attitudes in their societies.” He urged participants to transfer what they learned in the course to their peers in order to amplify its impact. He said that PCHR’s doors will always be open to participants to benefit from PCHR’s experience in the field of human rights and receive advanced training courses.
The participant expressed satisfaction with the training course, and that it was distinguished with rich topics and raised participatns’ awareness of human rights and complemented trainers’ efficiency and various and interactive training methods used in the course.
At the end of the ceremony, all participants received certificates.
