International Women, acting together against domestic violence

International Women’s Day is a huge festival in Russia, and the biggest sales day of the year for florists across the country. But yesterday in Ekaterinburg we marked the occasion with a more practical demonstration of what International Women’s Day means. With support from our Consulate in Ekaterinburg, the directors of womens’ crisis centres and refuges from 36 towns across the Urals and Western Siberia met to discuss how best to protect women from domestic violence and ensure the successful prosecution of its perpetrators.

Also present were representatives of The Haven in Wolverhampton, which has been working since 1997 with the ‘Ekaterina’ crisis centre in Ekaterinburg in improving awareness and responses to the problem of domestic violence in Russia and the UK. I first met Kath Rees from the Haven and Ludmilla Ermakova of ‘Ekaterina’ back in 2000 when they were part of a network of crisis centres drawn up to exchange Russian and British expertise. This time I was really impressed by two things – their determination to see womens’ rights defended, and the fact that their partnership has endured and developed through all these years. Thanks to the close friendship and professional cooperation between them, there has been real progress in seeing domestic violence treated as a crime and successfully prosecuted as such. Theirs is an inspiring example to mark International Womens’ Day.