The Minister of Women, Mayra Jimenezstated yesterday that femicides in the Dominican Republic Are decreasingafter specifying that from January 1 to June 30 of this year 2024, a decrease of 34 percent was recorded compared to the same period in 2023.
He said that June is indeed the most violent month of the year historically. It is followed by July, March and December.
According to the official, all public policies that have been implemented are yielding results. In terms of prevention, they have impacted more than three million four hundred thousand people throughout the country, in door-to-door awareness campaigns.
He also cited the Emergency Line *212growing from 7 in 2020 to 31 provinces today, providing a rescue and assistance service 24 hours a day.
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Shelters are another initiative whose results are seen in a positive light. More than six thousand women in risky conditions have been in these places.
From three houses that existed at the beginning of this administration, today there are 18, including a national center and a specialized house for human trafficking.
Similarly, in these four years, the legal team of the Ministry of Women has managed to get the courts to issue 11,000 convictions for gender violence in its many forms. The minister said that due to the trust generated in the population, the number of citizens seeking assistance has increased.
This and other issues were addressed by the official during her appearance at the Corripio Communications Group Weekly Lunchwhere he valued the 25 years since the creation of this State agency as positive.
The minister was accompanied by Addys Then Marte, Vice Minister of Planning and Development; Carolina Alvarado, Director of Cabinet; Jesica Croce, Director of Prevention and Attention to Violence and Miguelina Ramírez, Director of Comprehensive Rights.
Rejects merger
Asked about the proposal to eliminate the Ministry of Women and merge it with the Ministry of Youth to form a Ministry of Family, Jiménez rejects this idea and, on the contrary, believes that it should be strengthened and receive more funding to develop all the projects in the pipeline.
The official believes that there is a “absolute blur” with that topic.
He rejects the proposal and instead believes that the Dominican Republic needs strong institutions.
“In these 25 years there have been important advances in public policies related to the entire system of protection for victims of violence,” she said. However, she acknowledges that important challenges persist, such as limited financial resources.
When asked about the actions that need to continue to be promoted to achieve real equality, the minister referred to the educational aspect and the change of macho culture“We must educate in order to promote civilized, harmonious coexistence based on respect for rights,” he said.
Regarding this aspect, he pointed out that there are always levels of resistance, “people who believe that full human development can be achieved without working on all these cultural issues.”
In his view, it is education “that will lead the country to eliminate all types of discrimination, violence, etc., and will allow us to move towards full equality.”
Reform
In another order, the minister considers it necessary to include among the issues to be addressed as part of the reforms announced by the government those relating to equality and the inclusion of women.
“Here, the issue of equality and inclusion must be on the table in order to strengthen them. It is essential to strengthen institutions,”
Similarly, he said that in the regulatory field, it is required reform 27 legislative initiatives to strengthen women’s rights.
