The Victims of Crime Services Agency (VSA) has launched two more support services for victims of crime and domestic violence.
One of the services envisages that a victim who wants to testify in Court will be able to leave her children under the age of three in one of four childcare centres spread across various localities in Malta and Gozo, including Santa Venera, Mrieħel and Għarb in Gozo.
Mothers who receive a service from the Agency will be provided with this service after notification to the agency.
Similarly, those who are still dependent on him, such as the elderly, vulnerable or disabled, can, in the same way, apply to the agency so that, during their absence due to having to testify in Court, a certified carer can be sent to their residence to take care of their dependents. This service will also be provided free of charge.
Both services cover a short period of time before and after the person goes to testify in Court.
In a comment, the Minister for Home Affairs, Security and Employment, Byron Camilleri, said that the new services are tangible and aimed at victims of crime in order to alleviate the negative experience they have gone through. He said that since it was created four years ago, the Victim Support Agency has already served more than 4,000 victims. “In this way, we are showing that we are truly close to victims in society so that they do not become victims a second time.”
Minister Camilleri said that the new services, which were announced in the last Budget, also complement the tools that were made available to victims. Both through the support line 116006; through legal advice or emotional support services from professionals as well as by the agency assigning them a person to accompany them when they go to testify in Court.
The Agency’s Chief Executive Officer Brian Farrugia said that the new services have been designed around the needs of victims to ensure that they give their testimony in a clearer and more serene manner. The testimony of victims of crime in courts is essential to ensure proper justice is served and to help victims recover for a better quality of life.
For those at risk of domestic violence, there is also a law whereby persons in an intimate relationship can apply to the VSA to see if their partner has a history of domestic violence.
The Crime Victims Services Agency also provides support and assistance to victims through information and developments regarding their Court cases; guidance on what to expect in Court and also provides information regarding the offender’s release from prison.
Photo: MHSE/DOI
