All-female center to monitor domestic violence

RIAYDH: Social Affairs Minister Dr. Majed Al-Qassabi launched a center for receiving domestic violence calls at the Riyadh headquarters.
Dr. Bandar Mohammad Aleiban, the president of the National Human Rights Commission, was present during the occasion.
Speaking on the occasion, Social Welfare Undersecretary Dr. Abdullah Almeiqil said the center receives calls about domestic violence. The center, which is managed by female Saudi staff who are trained and specialized in the field, is also equipped with state-of-the-art equipment and has a toll-free number, 1919.
He pointed out that the center is open 24 hours, seven days a week, and deals with all calls in absolute confidentiality. It targets women of all ages and children under 18 years old, as well as the elderly and people with disabilities.
Almeiqil pointed out that all calls are dealt with according to rules and regulations. He said calls are verified and referred to the nearest unit or protection team, which has been trained on modern methods in how to deal with the reported cases to ensure speedy intervention and protection for abused women and children.
The staff deal with the reported cases according to the specified procedures which start with attempts at reconciliation, to taking abused cases into protection and referring the abuser to relevant authorities, while taking into consideration the interests of the women and children in all cases.
He said the center classifies calls according to their seriousness, with dangerous cases being referred to the police. He said there are 22 social protection teams in various parts of the Kingdom to receive cases and deal with them.
Almeiqil said the ministry entered into partnerships with various government authorities including the Ministry of Interior represented in the provinces’ governorates and police stations, the Ministries of Education, Health, Justice, the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution, the National Human Rights Commission, the Family Safety Program of the Ministry of the National Guard, in addition to other partners for child regulations such as the Ministry of Labor, the General Presidency for Youth Welfare, the Ministry of Commerce, the National Childhood Committee and the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs.
The Ministry of Social Affairs has worked on a number of items of legislation and protective procedures to curb domestic violence such as the executive list of protection from harm and child protection laws.
The launch was attended by the deputy president of the Human Rights Commission, Dr. Naser Alshahrani, Commander of the National Center for Operations Maj. Gen. Abdulrahman Alsaleh, Shourah Council member Dr. Hamda Alinizi, the executive director for the Family Safety Program, Dr. Maha Almuneif and a number of representatives from government partners in social protection, reported Alriyadh.