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Safety and perspective

Project duration: 5 years (2021–2025)

Country: Columbia 

Partner organizations: CENTRAP, Columbia, and Casa Ernestina Parra, Soacha, Columbia

Violence against women is a sad part of everyday life in Columbia. Although gender-specific violence is on the political agenda, improvements to the situation fail to be implemented due to missing financial resources and the lack of awareness on the part of the competent authorities. There are women’s shelters in some cities, but they are closed whenever money gets short.

In Soacha, Casa Ernestina Parra wants to be more than just a shelter for women affected by violence. With the support of the local women’s movement, the organization’s efforts aim at providing women with an access to education and to legal and psycho-social help. The majority of the women seeking refuge at the Casa come from precarious backgrounds. Most of them have fled to the city from the countryside due to armed conflicts or economic hardship. To be able to change their own reality, these women receive individual guidance tailored to their needs and information on their rights. The work aims at strengthening the Soacha women both individually and as a collectivity by improving awareness, providing council and lobbying.

Casa Ernestina Parra joins other organizations to raise awareness among the population, namely the authorities.

CENTRAP supports Casa Ernestina Parra in the field of administration and through educational programs. The organizations started their cooperation in 2007. CENTRAP is itself being supported by an interdisciplinary network of professional women.