IbDona has activated a new toll-free hotline for victims of gender violence, which will be available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
This is the 900 178 989, which is already available in parallel to the existing 971 178 989, which will continue to operate until a greater implementation of the new phone line is achieved. The Councilor for Families and Social Affairs, Catalina Cirer, and the director of IbDona, Catalina Salom, have presented the change of telephone with which they try to “facilitate accessibility to this service”, making it “more useful and faster”. It should be recalled that this is not a specific denunciation telephone, but would fulfill the functions of accompaniment service and legal advice to both victims and their environment. To denounce, the councilor has pointed out that the person who wants to do so has the 112, but has indicated that with the recent signing of the new agreement between IbDona and 112 there will be greater transfer of cases that may need one or the other service, so that professionals who attend them will refer them depending on the case.
Motives
Salom has stressed that this change of prefix has been motivated by those people who do not have a fixed telephone rate and still work with prepaid mobiles, so the new telephone number will not have any cost. However, he has detailed that this number does leave a trace in the telephone call registry, something that they have tried to erase but as it depended on the telephone companies they have not been able to achieve it.
Broadcast
To disseminate this new issue, IbDona will distribute brochures and leaflets in Catalan, Spanish, English, German, Arabic and Chinese, as well as Braille and for people with cognitive disabilities. Similarly, it will be publicized in health centers, schools, organizations, consulates and meetings will be held with social organizations. On the other hand, downloadable material will be posted on the IbDona website.
The importance of accompaniment
Salom has remarked that it is not necessary to file a complaint to access this service, as he understands that “every woman can suffer different cycles of violence”, so for IbDona is “important” to find this support service. “The more resources are allocated to fight against gender violence, there will be better comprehensive care and, in case you do not get to reduce the number of victims, at least the maximum possible number of them will be reached,” he said. From the Conselleria have explained that soon will provide data from the memory of 2024 IbDona phone but have specified that on average serves an average of between 4,500 and 5,000 calls a year and provides care to about 3,000 victims of gender violence, their environment and professionals.
