With the number of domestic violence victims on the increase, an NGO that supports victims of crime will be training survivors to rebuild their lives and spot signs of abuse.

The first of its sort locally, the ‘course’ will be online in keeping with COVID mitigation measures and those who enrol can also remain anonymous.

Launched as part of Victim Support Malta (VSM)’s POW-R campaign, the programme will help survivors spot signs of abuse – as very often they risk entering into another abusive relationship.

Projects’ manager Charlotte Portelli told Times of Malta those leading the course have been trained by a UK charity.

Participants will be referred by professionals to ensure their safety and to prevent anyone from deceivingly posing as a victim.

VSM assists victims of theft, burglary, cybercrime, sexual assault, harassment, physical assault and hate crime among others. However, most of those who reach out are domestic violence survivors.

In 2020, 94 of its 121 clients had suffered domestic violence, while in the first half of this year, 62 out of the 75 people accessing the group’s services were domestic violence survivors.

Several have expressed concern about a rise in domestic violence

Over the past months, several have expressed concern about a rise in domestic violence especially since the pandemic forced those suffering from such abuse to spend more time at home with the perpetrators.

Local crime data showed that domestic violence reports increased by a fifth in the first three months after COVID-19 reached the island last year.

A few months into the semi-lockdown in 2020, Commissioner for Domestic Violence Audrey Friggieri urged people to keep a lookout for violence in their neighbourhood.

Unfortunately, the Maltese are among the Europeans least willing to intervene when witnessing domestic violence, according to a study by the EU’s agency for fundamental rights.

The course provided by VSM, in collaboration with SOAR (a support group for domestic violence victims)  is based on what is known as Triple R – a trauma-informed domestic abuse educational programme.

It aims to enable survivors to recognise abuse and its impact on them and their children, recover from abuse and support their children to do so and develop resilience by building on their strengths and empower them to face their challenges.

The project is being funded by the Active Citizens Fund.

Have you suffered crime and would like to access support? Reach out on 2122 8333 or info@victimsupport.org.mt