Project Title

Zero Violence Zone a Pilot Initiative in  an Urban-Rural Situation

Funding Agency

Duration of the project

UNIFEM

Phase I:   July 2003 to June 2004.

Phase II: July 2004 to June 2005.

Geographical Coverage

Sangam Vihar- an unauthorized colony in southern Delhi & Bawal- a Community Developmental Block of the Rewari District in Haryana.

Objectives

• Creating awareness and sensitization among the community members on the issues related to violence particularly targeting community women and young girls.

• Sensitization of local machinery, particularly government bodies on the issues related to domestic violence. 

• Evolving community Based redressal mechanism for combating violence against women by developing support groups (both men and women members) in the community.

• Developing linkages of support groups to various institutions/agencies working on issues related to violence.

Project Brief

The first phase of the project included orientation of the research staffs on the issue of Gender violence. Having done this, the guidelines for the FGDs were drafted in order to carry out a needs assessment. Some highlights of the findings were:

• Most of the men in both the areas lack sensitivity to the issue of violence against women (VAW).

• Lack of education among women leads to lack of knowledge regarding their rights.

• Certain social evils such as dowry and alcoholism persist in these two areas, which lead to VAW. Men are the chief perpetrators backed by other important family members such as the mother in law or sister-in law.

• Various stakeholders particularly the police, health personnel, teachers etc. are short in their respective role-playing in these areas.

• Women in both the areas have internalised VAW as a part of life and most of them do not raise their voice out of fear.

• The rural-urban divide is prominent in the close-knit family in Bawal villages as opposed to the loose structure of Sangam Vihar community. Thus, there is more family support in Bawal compared to Sangam Vihar. Also the nuclear family structure in Sangam Vihar can’t offer a buffer in fighting VAW. 

The needs assessment report has provided basis for designing interventions in the project area for tackling the issue of VAW, which is a continuous process. This will be followed by an impact assessment. The next phase will start from July 2004. Some planning for this phase is as follows:

• Orientation workshop with research staffs on legal aspects of VAW.

• Sensitisation of community at various levels will continue.