Finding shelter in Kosovo
"He beat me so much he almost killed me I took the youngest of my children, jumped into a taxi and I arrived here." After nine years of domestic violence, Valbona took the decision to leave her husband and find shelter in a safe house.
A shelter for victims
The shelter, one of the few in Kosovo to welcome victims of domestic violence, opened in September 2000 thanks to the dedication of a doctor from Pristina, who managed to find donors and support for the project.
"The idea came up during a school seminar: the kids talked about their lives at home, and the word 'violence' came up very often", explains Sakibe Doli, co-ordinator of the safe house.
The staff of the centre includes a doctor, a psychologist, and a sociologist who counsel the victims. A lawyer is also available to represent them in court.
A new world
"Coming here was like being born again," says Valbona. "It was a new world. I found a doctor who helped me to recover and my child also feels better."
Sometimes all the victims need is advice, sometimes they ask the shelter to mediate with their husbands and families.
"We had the case of a girl who was sexually abused", says Sakibe. "She was rejected by her family, her friends and the whole community. She was on the verge of committing suicide. We contacted the family, and they finally understood the trauma she'd been through. She's now back in her village and attending school."
The SOS telephone
"The problem with domestic violence is that everyone knows about it, but very few dare talk about it", says the co-ordinator of the safe house. To assist the victims looking for help, the shelter launched a new service at the begining of the year, the SOS telephone. "It is a direct and anonymous telephone line which has proved quite successful so far", says Sakibe.
Raising public awareness and advocating for the rights of the victims is one of the main tasks of the OSCE Mission in Kosovo Department of Human Rights.
"Any space and time given to us in the local media can also help in shifting public opinion and increase awareness of the sad cycle of violence against women in Kosovo," continues Sabike.
Looking ahead
Luljeta is a young woman who has spent one year in the shelter. According to her, the stay at the safe house has given her strength and determination. "I am trying to go to Germany. I have a brother there, he will help me and my child. I will not go back", she says. She is angry about what happened to her in the past, but she knows what she wants now: "I just want to provide for my child, educate him, and take care of him".
As well as helping the victims, the center does its best to prepare them for whatever future they choose. "Sometimes they decide to go back to their husband, sometimes they go back to school, sometimes they decide to get divorced, says Sabike. "But finding a job now in Kosovo is difficult, especially for a woman with children to take care of. That's why the counselling is so important", he adds.
A safe house, somewhere in Kosovo
The shelter is an anonymous house. Guards, an alarm system and direct radio contact with the police and the Kosovo Force (KFOR), guarantee the safety of the victims who have come to the centre to escape their tormentors.
But a lot of the "abandoned" husbands cannot accept the consequences of their acts and often attempt to track their spouses down to bring them back home.
"Whenever I am invited to be a guest on local radio shows, I give the SOS phone number or my mobile phone", says Sabike. "That makes me a target. Half of the calls are from furious husbands who threaten me. Anyway, I feel safer than many women in their own homes."
The local number of the SOS telephone line is: 0390 30098
Caritas, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the Kosovo Foundation for Open Society, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Kosovo Womens' Initiative support the safe house.