PMO Authority for the Advancement of the Status of Women Director Vered Swid
Briefs the Cabinet on Violence Against Women and on the Inter-Ministerial
Treatment of the Phenomenon
(Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser)

The Cabinet, at its weekly meeting yesterday (Sunday, 23 November 2014), was
briefed by Prime Minister's Office Authority for the Advancement of the
Status of Women Director Vered Swid on violence against women in Israel and
on inter-ministerial treatment of the phenomenon, ahead of the International
Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, which will be marked
tomorrow.

Swid told the ministers that there has been a decline in instances of
violence against women including sexual offenses and added that the
improvement in the data is the result of joint work by Government ministries
including the Social Affairs and Social Services, Public Security, Health,
Aliyah and Immigrant Absorption, Justice and Education ministries which,
along with shelters for battered women and women's organizations, brought
about a series of activities throughout the country. These include:
Operating emergency switchboards in five languages; operating 14 shelters
for battered women and their children; operating 90 units and centers for
both individual and group treatment of incidents of violence in the family;
creating additional positions for social workers who deal with violence in
the family; operating local council programs to prevent violence against
women; locating, diagnosing and treating victims of violence in the family;
operating the "Bridges" plan to reduce violence in the family among
immigrants; educational pamphlets to identify "red lights"; operating
therapy groups for men; self-defense workshops, etc.

Swid added that the "Put a Stop to Violence" campaign will soon be launched.
The campaign, which was initiated by the Authority, calls for men to seek
counselling and treatment. Swid recently presented the campaign to the UN,
where delegates from various countries expressed an interest. The campaign
will be featured in cinemas and on websites, including in Arabic.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, "We will not countenance attacks on
women, murder of women by their partners, or treating women like property.
These phenomena must be fought against and we will do so."

The Chairperson of the Ministerial Committee on Advancement of the Status of
Women, Minister Limor Livnat, said, "Recently, we have witnessed a serious
phenomenon in which women and girls are photographed without their
knowledge, and contemptible and humiliating photographs are disseminated
over social networks. This can cause terrible tragedies for those who have
been photographed and this phenomenon as well must be fought against."