Tag: gender-based violence

UK steps up health support for women and girls in Gaza

£4.25 million in UK aid will help ensure UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, can provide life-saving support to vulnerable women and girls

  • Foreign Secretary David Cameron announces £4.25m in aid to support sexual and reproductive healthcare in Gaza.
  • Support expected to help UN agency UNFPA reach more than 110,000 women with community midwives, menstrual hygiene kits and clean birth delivery kits.
  • Comes as women and girls in Gaza increasingly at risk of disease, pregnancy complications and gender-based violence.

The Foreign Secretary has announced new funding to tackle the sexual and reproductive healthcare crisis in Gaza. The £4.25 million in UK aid will help ensure UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency, can provide life-saving support to vulnerable women and girls.

This support is expected to reach about 111,500 women, around 1 in 5 of the adult women in Gaza. It will support up to 100 community midwives, the distribution of around 20,000 menstrual hygiene management kits and 45,000 clean delivery kits.

Foreign Secretary David Cameron confirmed the additional funding in response to a UN flash appeal for the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

Women and girls are particularly at risk from disease, pregnancy complications and gender-based violence in Gaza currently, with 85% of people displaced and currently just 13 out of the 36 hospitals partially functional, with one specialist maternity hospital functioning.

Foreign Secretary David Cameron said: “Women are bearing the brunt of the desperate humanitarian situation in Gaza today. Many thousands of women are currently pregnant and will be worrying about delivering their babies safely.

“This new UK funding will help make giving birth safer and improve the lives of mothers and their new-born babies. 

“We need to see an immediate pause in the fighting so we can secure the safe release of hostages, get more aid in, and allow organisations like UNFPA to do their vital work effectively.”

UNFPA Executive Director, Dr. Natalia Kanem, said: “In Gaza, the reality for women and girls is horrific – and getting worse each day. They have little to no access to essential health services and menstrual supplies, and many are forced to give birth in unsafe conditions that put their lives and those of their babies at risk.

“The support of the United Kingdom and other partners is vital to get lifesaving resources directly to women and girls in desperate need.”

UNFPA is providing life-saving reproductive health supplies for women and girls in Gaza. Since the most recent crisis began, UNFPA has provided nearly 74,000 adolescents and children with psychosocial support and financial support for over 2,000 vulnerable women at risk of gender- based violence to purchase essential menstrual and hygiene items.

There were an estimated 50,000 pregnant women in Gaza at the start of the crisis, with more than 180 births occurring each day and over 5,500 women expected to deliver in the next month.

The UK has trebled our aid commitment to the Occupied Palestinian Territories this financial year and we are doing everything we can to get more aid in and open more crossings, including calling for an immediate pause to get aid in and hostages out.

Israel must take steps, working with other partners including the UN and Egypt, to significantly increase the flow of aid into Gaza including allowing prolonged humanitarian pauses, opening more routes into Gaza and restoring and sustaining water, fuel and electricity.

STUC Disabled Workers’ Conference: Usdaw seeks to tackle gender-based violence and poverty

Retail trade union Usdaw has a delegation of reps and officials attending the annual Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) Disabled Workers’ Conference in Glasgow, Saturday 2 and Sunday 3 December.

The union has submitted motions on tackling gender-based violence against disabled workers, along with building a movement of protest against poverty.

Tracy Gilbert – Usdaw Regional Secretary for Scotland says: “The number of disabled people living in poverty in Scotland has increased in recent years with more than half of all people in poverty living in a household with at least one disabled worker.

“We reject any suggestion that this is inevitable, poverty and the failure to tackle inequality are political decisions. The disability employment gap in Scotland remains high with disabled women facing even greater discrimination, larger pay gaps and higher unemployment.

“As well as taking action to offset the immediate impacts of the cost-of-living crisis on disabled people and their families; the Scottish and Westminster governments must also act to address the underlying historical inequalities experienced by disabled people including the disproportionate impact of austerity policies.”

Usdaw welcomes the important role the Disabled Workers Committee play setting the record straight and is asking the STUC to:

  • Support the efforts of unions and disabled people’s organisations to tackle disability discrimination and change the way disabled people are viewed, valued and included in Scottish and wider UK society.
  • Campaign for improvements to social security so that as well as protecting disabled workers from poverty, it also prevents poverty; takes into account the significant and additional costs of being disabled; and fully supports independent living.
  • Continue to build a movement of protest against the current cost of living crisis that highlights the specific impact of the current crisis on disabled people and puts their voices centre stage.

Tracy Gilbert continues: “Studies show that disabled women are disproportionately likely to experience gender-based violence but are far less likely to report it.

“Workplace trade union reps have a vital role in supporting women workers to recognise and recover from abuse and this is particularly the case for disabled women who are often less able to access appropriate support and to have their voices heard.

“Changes to domestic violence legislation to include coercive control are important in understanding how specific abuse against disabled women may manifest itself in a variety of ways, for example where the abuser controls someone through their impairment or support needs.

“We commend the work union reps are doing to support disabled survivors of domestic abuse.”

Usdaw is seeking greater recognition by employers of the challenges disabled women face in escaping abuse and is calling on the STUC to:

  • Support affiliated unions to negotiate domestic abuse policies with employers that recognise the specific needs of disabled women workers.   
  • Involve disabled women in developing the trade union and labour movement’s work on gender-based violence.

£5 million more for services to address gender-based violence

Frontline services for women and girls affected by gender-based violence will receive £5 million to deal with additional pressures that have occurred during the pandemic.

The funding will go to rape crisis centres and domestic abuse services to cut waiting lists, helping to ensure those affected can access the support they need more quickly. The increased support fulfils one of the commitments for the first 100 days of this government.

It will comprise approximately £4.5 million to be split between Scottish Women’s Aid and Rape Crisis Scotland, and a total of £500,000 for 12 other specialist support services and organisations.

Equalities Minister Christina McKelvie said: “Violence against women and girls is one of the most devastating and fundamental violations of human rights and is totally unacceptable.

“We recognise the vital work that local women’s aids and rape crisis centres do day in, day out to support women and girls, including throughout the pandemic, and I know demand for these services has increased. This in itself is appalling and I am determined to support rape crisis centres and domestic abuse services, which provide a lifeline for many women and girls.

“As the need for these services has grown in this most difficult of times, this funding will help survivors, and those at risk, to access specialist support when they need it most.

“We will continue to encourage survivors to report their experience and seek support they need.”

Dr Marsha Scott, Scottish Women’s Aid Chief Executive, said: “We have seen a huge increase in demand for support from survivors of domestic abuse and the impact from this is already being felt as our waiting lists are growing.

“This funding from the Scottish Government will help us manage this higher demand and reduce these waiting lists, allowing more accessible support for survivors.

“For us, this is an opportunity to bridge funding between Coronavirus (COVID-19) emergency funding and a new funding system based on need, rather than historical arrangements.”

Sandy Brindley, Rape Crisis Scotland Chief Executive, said: “Seeking support after sexual violence can be an incredibly difficult thing to do, and it’s so important that when people do feel able to reach out, that specialist services are resourced to be able to provide the support that is often described to us by survivors as life-saving.

“This funding – in conjunction with the new Delivering Equally Safe fund – is a very welcome and much-needed investment in local Rape Crisis services, but our approach must be sustainable. It is only through a strategic and co-ordinated approach that we will be able to make sure that survivors across Scotland are able to access the support they deserve, at the point of need.”

Full list of organisations receiving funding:

  • Aberdeen Cyrenians
  • Barnardos
  • Committed to Ending Abuse
  • Domestic Abuse and Sexual Assault Team – West Lothian
  • Dumfries and Stewartry Women’s Aid
  • Fife Women’s Aid
  • Grampian Women’s Aid
  • Kingdom Abuse Survivor’s Project
  • Moray Women’s Aid
  • Rape Crisis Scotland
  • Saheliya
  • Scottish Borders – Children First
  • Scottish Women’s Aid
  • West Dunbartonshire Council Support Service

This latest funding comes on top of £5.75 million allocated in 2020-21 to help redesign frontline services to ensure they are best equipped to handle the additional pressures of the pandemic.

The Scottish Government is also providing £18 million this year to third sector organisations and public bodies working to end violence against women and girls through our Delivering Equally Safe fund.

Scotland’s 24 hour Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline is available on 0800 027 1234.

Rape Crisis Scotland Helpline is available on 08088 01 03 02. Calls to this number are free. Alternatively email support@rapecrisisscotland.org.uk or text 07537 410027.

In an emergency please call the police on 999.

Further information on the law can be found at safer.scot