On September 16, 2020, the first shelter for women with children that suffered from domestic and gender-based violence was opened in Rubizhne, Luhansk Oblast.

The 24-hour temporary shelter for female victims of domestic and gender-based violence was established as a specialized branch of the Rubizhne City Center of Social Services. According to the current legislation, its address is confidential. The shelter is designed to accommodate 15 women, including women with children. It has rooms for sleeping and relaxing, showers, kitchen, a special unit equipped for persons with disabilities, a room for group work.

Kateryna Bezhynska, Deputy Head of the Luhansk Oblast State Administration noted: “A shelter for women with children is not just a complex of social, legal, information and other services. For every woman with a child that was exposed to violence, it is also a hope for a future in which there is no place for such a shameful phenomenon as domestic violence”.

The experts will provide a range of psychological, social and household, medical, legal, information and other services. The stay in the shelter for victims of violence is free and can last up to 3 months, and if necessary – extended up to 6 months. The shelter is accessible to residents of Rubizhne, including women with disabilities and internally displaced women.

“Peace begins with peace in the home, so it is important to do everything possible to ensure that peace and harmony prevail in families, and that all those exposed to violence have all the necessary support. Investing in combating and prevention of domestic violence is an investment in peace, local development and welfare of the society”, said Jaime Nadal, UNFPA Representative.

Kateryna Bezhynska, Deputy Head of the Luhansk Oblast State Administration, Anatoliy Busenkov, Secretary of the Rubizhne City Council, Jaime Nadal, UNFPA Representative to Ukraine took part in the opening of the shelter.

The shelter was established within the Integrated Approach to Addressing the Problem of Violence against Women and Girls in Ukraine Project with the support of UNFPA in collaboration with the Rubizhne City Council, the Ukrainian Foundation for Public Health with financial support of the UK Government. Currently, the shelter is financed from the local budget.