Most family safety center complaints are from girls

The National Family Safety Program received 38,863 phone complaints during the past year while the child helpline alone received some 211,500 calls. Fifty-four percent of all complaints were submitted by girls, while those from boys amounted to 6 percent and calls by women were 34 percent.
The nature of calls varied between counseling, advice and inquiries concerning the provided services. More than 400 calls were transferred to authorities to be addressed immediately, according to Maha Muneef, executive director of the center.
She said the new strategy of the protection program did not replace programs of abuse prevention, training, awareness and advocacy, noting that dealing with victims of violence required a multidisciplinary effort with involvement from health, social, security and legal experts. She said a dedicated child helpline dealt exclusively with children under the age of 18 and provided them with assistance, counseling and psychosocial support.
The helpline receives all kinds of complaints of violence inside and outside the home, and refers calls to authorities as needed to make sure the necessary services are provided to those concerned.
Saira Al-Ghamdi, a founding member of Protection Charity Association, emphasized the need to establish a commission or specialized body involved specifically in the protection of women’s rights, and also to provide women with financial assistance.