Partners

• Persons appointed by the Council of Ministers to serve in a personal capacity, who have been selected from non-governmental organisations active in the field of domestic violence and government bodies including the police, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Health and the Social Welfare Services

Description

The national law on domestic violence provides for the establishment of an advisory committee comprising individuals from the private and public sectors to coordinate actions intended to prevent and combat domestic violence. These actions include awareness raising, training, research, and the monitoring of compliance with the legislative framework.
In 2002, the advisory committee produced a manual on interdepartmental procedures for addressing domestic violence for the Social Welfare Services, the police, the Public Health Services, the Office of the Attorney General and non-governmental organisations active in the field of domestic violence. It was approved and adopted by the Council of Ministers. Two years later, in 2004, the implementation of the manual was evaluated by a member of the advisory committee. Ιn 2017, the advisory committee produced a new manual of interdepartmental procedures that focused on children victims of domestic violence, building on the experiences gained from implementing the 2002 interdepartmental manual and aiming to improve the provision of coordinated services. The new manual outlines the procedures to be followed by governmental and non-governmental agencies, clarifying the tasks and roles of each agency and providing step-by-step guidance on the procedures surrounding reporting, referrals, investigations and service provision.