Women's shelters Vienna

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The Vienna women's shelters consist of four women's shelters with a total of 175 places for women and their children who seek protection from domestic violence . The first of the women's shelters opened on November 1, 1978. All four are run by the Wiener Frauenhäuser Association, as well as a transitional living area with 52 transitional apartments and two shared apartments , an advice center and an emergency number that can be reached day and night .

history

Founding documents of the Social Aid Association for Women and Children at Risk (1978)

The first Viennese women's shelter was initiated by a group of young social workers and their lecturers at the Social Academy, Irmtraut Leirer-Karlsson . The Berlin women's shelter served as a model. The project was supported by politicians such as the former local councilor Johanna Dohnal . The board of the sponsoring association for social aid for women at risk and their children, which was newly founded for this purpose, was made up of honorary members from the start: Christian Broda (chairman), Anne Kohn-Feuermann , Irmtraut Karlsson, Heinz Steinert and Johanna Dohnal were members. As City Councilor for Health and Social Affairs, Alois Stacher promised his support.

The group of social workers initially criticized the composition of the board and that they themselves were excluded from it. They feared that their content-related work in the women's refuge would be restricted and therefore contacted autonomous women's groups. Although they criticized the cooperation between the social workers and the SPÖ women, they were on the other hand not prepared to work specifically and look for alternative financing options or suitable accommodation. The party women had to overcome resistance within the SPÖ, especially the opinion shared by the mayor of Vienna, Leopold Gratz , that no women were beaten in Vienna. Stammtisch jokes such as “The Dohnal would like to open a brothel!” Entered the local council. The name given to the association also reflected the political and social climate: the term women's refuge should not be included in order not to arouse associations with a house of joy.

Ultimately, the social workers found common ground with the SPÖ women: the social workers were supposed to make internal decisions, and the organization of their work in the women's refuge was left to them to decide. However, outward-looking actions should be discussed with the board. After a suitable old apartment was found, the first Viennese - and thus also the first Austrian - women's refuge was opened on November 1st, 1978 and was immediately overcrowded. The second women's shelter in Vienna was opened in February 1980, the third followed in 1996. The fourth women's shelter was opened in 2002 and the first moved to a new house, and in 2012 the second also moved. Since 2005, all four women's shelters in Vienna have had a joint emergency aid hotline that is manned around the clock. In 2014 there were more than 100 employees in the association. The employees in the women's and children's areas all have psychosocial training, have various foreign language skills and knowledge of the clients' countries of origin. In 2013 the association founded the association of Austrian women's shelters together with the women's shelters in Graz, Kapfenberg and St. Pölten .

Christian Broda soon passed the chairmanship of the association (today: Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser ) to Johanna Dohnal, later followed by Irmtraut Leirer-Karlsson and since 1996 Martina Ludwig-Faymann has been chairwoman of the association. Andrea Brem has been the managing director since 2001 and was awarded the BAWAG PSK Women's Initiative Prize in 2014 for her commitment.

Currently (2016) the four women's shelters in Vienna together offer approx. 175 places for women and children seeking protection, which  are financed in full by the municipality of Vienna, MA 57 (advancement of women and coordination of women's affairs). Vienna thus fulfills the recommendations of the Council of Europe with the women's shelters alone (excluding transitional apartments) , according to which one women's shelter should be available for every 10,000 inhabitants.

Women

The most important thing for women moving into a refuge is safe shelter where they can live free from fear. Security advice and a personal security plan are drawn up at the first meeting, possibly in cooperation with the police . In addition, advice can be taken on various topics, the women can exchange ideas with other affected persons and they have time to think about what they have experienced and to develop future perspectives, whereby they also find the support of the carers. After moving out, the women can return to the women's shelter at any time if they experience violence again.

In 2014, 681 women sought protection in one of Vienna's women's shelters. In 2013 there were 592. The reason for the strong increase can be found in the fact that the waiting list system was abandoned in 2014. As the Viennese women's shelters see it as their most important task to offer women threatened by violence a sheltered place to live quickly and unbureaucratically, women should no longer be turned away, for which occasional short-term overcrowding is accepted.

The level of education of the clients shows that domestic violence is not a problem for the poorly educated classes alone. In 2014, 25% had a degree or a university of applied sciences, 13% had a Matura and 27% a middle school.

Migrant women

Women with a migration background make up the largest group of women in refugee homes, as Austrian women are more likely to exercise their right to evict. While in 2014 25% of the women in Vienna's women's shelters were Austrian (2013: 24%), 40 (43)% were Austrian men in the group of those at risk. Accordingly, migrant women are also mistreated by Austrian men. The reasons given for the relatively high proportion of migrant women (including 19 (18)% women from EU countries) are linguistic barriers, which result in poor access to the social and legal systems and thus make it more difficult to use the victim protection laws. The customs in the countries of origin are also among the reasons. Among other things, the women are often exposed to the pressure of the whole family, which is why the right to evacuate is often of no help to them. But Austrian laws also exacerbate the situation of women. If women follow their husbands as so-called family reunification, they do not acquire an independent right of residence and are therefore dependent on the goodwill of their husbands. In cases where the language skills of the employees are insufficient to provide advice in their native language, interpreters are called in.

children

A separate support area for children has existed since 1996. The child care workers support children who have been traumatized by themselves or witnessed violence and offer psychological and social crisis intervention in various individual and group programs. The partisan advocacy of child care women can also lead to differences of opinion with the mothers of the children. At regular intervals and as required, the staff in the children's area organize their own children's home meetings in order to give space to the wishes and complaints of the children and to work out possible solutions. There are also topic-specific offers such as painting and art therapy , moto pedagogy , therapeutic riding or Shiatsu .

Once a week there is a recreational pedagogue who undertakes various recreational educational activities with the children and young people, a former elementary school teacher who offers the children tutoring and help with homework, and a clown pedagogue. The latter specializes in understanding sensitive aspects of everyday life, such as B. dealing with emotions, conflicts or misadventures in a humorous way.

Group of boys

A group of boys has been offered in cooperation with and in the men's counseling facility since 2008. Male therapists help the boys to find their identity and to stabilize them therapeutically. They enable them to gain positive experiences with male identification figures and new conflict resolution models. Increasing social skills , improved interaction and a conscious handling of conflicts should have a preventive effect.

Male adolescents between 14 and 18 years of age

In the first years of women's shelters there were repeated problems with sons at the height of their puberty and the framework of a women's shelter, through which they were constantly confronted with stories about violent men, was not suitable for their personal search for identity. This is why an age limit of 14 years for male adolescents was introduced between the late 1980s and the early 1990s. For the elderly, other options were sought, such as in a crisis center or with relatives. Due to the age limit, however, fewer women came to the women's shelter who had sons at the age that they did not want to part with. The situation repeatedly led to discussions in the board, because no women should be excluded. In December 2009, a pilot project finally began in the newly relocated 1st Vienna Women's Refuge, in which older sons can also stay with their mother, provided they meet certain requirements (in particular, they must not be violent themselves and must have regular discussions with the responsible employee of the Children's area). After a conversation between the head of the women's shelter and mother and son, a decision is made about admission. Since the new 1st Viennese women's refuge has separate living units with their own bathroom and toilet, accommodation here is easier than in the cramped old rooms. In addition, mothers with young sons receive a residential unit not far from the office space.

Animal concept

The 4th Vienna Women's Refuge became - after positive experiences with the “Animal Concept” pilot project - a facility to which women and children fleeing can also take their pets (caged animals and dogs) with them. There is also a project with animal-assisted therapy, with rabbits and guinea pigs visiting the women's shelter.

Counseling center

Due to the many outpatient and telephone consultations in the women's shelters, an external counseling center was set up in 1992 for women in situations of violence, separation or problems within the family, which is why the focus of the counseling center is on the prevention of acute violence. The seven employees, who advise women seeking help anonymously and free of charge, come from the fields of social work , psychology and education ; they are supported by lawyers and a doctor on a case-by-case basis and are also available to accompany the proceedings. The facility is jointly financed by the City of Vienna, the Federal Ministry of Justice and the Federal Ministry of Labor, Family and Youth . Since moving to Vivenotgasse 53 in Vienna's 12th district in 2015 , the counseling center has also been barrier-free .

Transitional living area

In 1993 the association rented the first apartments as transitional apartments. These are temporarily given to residents of the Vienna women's shelters who no longer need the protection of the women's shelter, but still need psychosocial or legal support or a stabilization phase on the way to a self-determined life. However, they have to pay rent, cope with everyday life independently and look after their children themselves. The aftercare team is available for advice, discussions, support in finding your own apartment, looking for a job as well as in divorce and custody proceedings and also accompanies the women to court, police and other offices and authorities.

There are a total of 52 transitional apartments - 39 individual apartments distributed throughout Vienna and a temporary residential building with 13 apartments. In addition, there have been two apartments run as shared flats since 2009. In 2014, 102 women and 96 children were cared for in the entire transitional living area (2013: 103 women and 100 children). The length of stay is usually limited to one year, but it can be extended if necessary. In 2013, 18% of women needed support for more than a year and a half; In 2014, their share rose to 29%, and the need for advice and accompaniment (mainly to court) also increased. The reason for the increase is the Childhood and Name Rights Amendment Act, which came into force on February 1, 2013 and which has extended the custody procedure .

Parent counseling

One of the changes brought about by the Parental and Name Rights Amendment Act is the mandatory parenting advice in the case of an amicable divorce. Since a large number of women refugee residents divorce amicably "for the sake of peace", the Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser has also been offering parenting counseling in accordance with Section 95 (1a) of the Foreign Trade Act since 2013, which focuses on the best interests of the child.

Public Relations and Cooperations (selection)

  • Seminars have been held for police officers in dealing with domestic violence since 1989. Since 1996, the women's shelter has also been training other professional groups, such as staff from the health sector, employees of the Office for Youth and Family as well as the Red Cross and trainee judges.
  • Employees of the Vienna Women's Shelters Association were the initiators of the Protection Against Violence Act, which came into force in 1997, and they were also part of the multi-institutional team that drafted the law.
  • There has been a cooperation with the Vienna Workers' Promotion Fund (waff) since 2007. The women are supported in their professional integration or reintegration with special consideration of their exceptional situation. The offer is in addition to the possibilities offered by the labor market service, the employees of both facilities and the social workers of the women's shelter coordinate with each other in order to find the best possible solutions. The aim is to enable women to build an independent existence, with gainful employment being an important factor.
  • Networking meetings and collaborations take place with numerous organizations as well as offices of the municipality of Vienna and the Vienna State Police Directorate. These include, for example, the Office for Youth and Family (MA 11), the Vienna Social Fund , Volkshilfe , the child and youth advocate , the forced marriage working group and the like. a.
  • Under the motto 30 years of women's shelters: Protection for women, protection for children , the association held a two-day conference in April 2008 in the Vienna City Hall, which was mainly devoted to the involvement of children in domestic violence. The start was a political talk moderated by Christoph Feurstein entitled 30 years of women's shelters and still not a bit quiet , in which u. a. Women's Minister Doris Bures , Women's City Councilor Sandra Frauenberger and Ex-Federal Minister Johanna Dohnal took part. The contributions were published in a conference report. To mark the anniversary, Karin Berger and Andrea Brem published the book At the Beginning I Was Very In Love , for which women shelter residents wrote down their personal stories or were interviewed.
  • On the occasion of the anniversary “35 years of Viennese women's shelters”, a symposium was held with domestic and foreign experts focusing on psychological violence. The contributions were published in the conference report “Without me until you do nothing - Psychological violence in the family”.
  • The study “ Sexual violence in couple relationships” was carried out together with Elfriede Fröschl . It was presented on November 3rd and 4th 2011 at the specialist conference “… your own fault !?” in the Austria Center Vienna , to which all authorities and organizations dealing with domestic violence were invited.
  • Information events and workshops are held regularly at social academies, and upon invitation also at universities, middle and higher schools, vocational schools, adult education centers, mothers' groups, etc.
  • On the subject of psychological violence , an empirical study was published in 2014 together with the health officer of the City of Vienna, Beate Wimmer-Puchinger , in which the different forms of psychological violence were recorded in order to make the boundary between everyday minor injuries and psychological violence visible. An attempt was made to sensitize the population to the topic by means of posters and commercials.
  • The association is represented with information stands at various events, such as the Open City Hall event initiated by City Councilor Sandra Frauenberger on the occasion of International Women's Day , the 16 Days Against Violence campaign on the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and the Austrian Women's Run .
  • Advertising campaigns on billboards, in cinemas, TV and radio, and in Viennese bathrooms : When love hurts , Ugly things happen even in the most beautiful apartments , When the bedroom becomes the most dangerous place , When the partner takes control . Some of the campaigns were awarded various prizes, for example in 2010 in the “Cyber ​​Shortlist” category at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity for particularly creative online advertising.
  • The association is working with the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime on a project in Ukraine to create a network of aid agencies for women and girls at risk.

literature

  • Irmtraut Karlsson (Ed.): A broken taboo. Women's shelters in Austria . Deuticke, Vienna 1988, ISBN 3-7005-4609-2 .
  • Andrea Brem, Karin Berger: At first I was very in love. Women tell of love, violence and a new beginning in the women's refuge . Mandelbaum Verlag, Vienna 2008, ISBN 978-3-85476-270-6 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. a b c d Irmtraut Karlsson (Ed.): A broken taboo. Women's shelters in Austria . Deuticke, Vienna 1988, ISBN 3-7005-4609-2 , p. 27-35, 85 .
  2. Isabelle Engels: She would like to open a cathouse! The first Austrian women's refuge and its history (s). In: Sendung Hörbilder. OE1 ( ORF ), February 18, 2012, accessed on February 27, 2016 .
  3. a b Martina Ludwig-Faymann: 30 years of women's shelters and still not a bit quiet ... (PDF; 543 KB) In: 30 years of women's shelters in Vienna. Conference report on the occasion of the conference on April 9 and 10, 2008 in the Vienna City Hall. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2008, p. 8 , archived from the original on April 29, 2016 ; accessed on September 10, 2019 .
  4. a b c d e f story. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, accessed on February 8, 2016 .
  5. a b Martina Ludwig-Faymann: Introduction. (PDF) In: 35 Years of the Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser. on the occasion of the symposium "Without me you are nothing" - Psychological violence in the family. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2014, p. 10 , accessed on February 6, 2016 .
  6. 30 years of women's shelters in Vienna - conference report on the occasion of the conference on April 9 and 10, 2008 in the Vienna City Hall. (PDF; 543 KB) see Andrea Brem: From idea to movement, from project to institution - the Vienna women's shelters . In: Frauenhaeuser-wien.at. 2008, p. 20 ff. , Archived from the original on April 29, 2016 ; accessed on October 16, 2019 .
  7. Stefanie Grubich: Frauenberger congratulates Andrea Brem on the BAWAG PSK women's initiative award. wien.at, November 18, 2014, accessed on March 3, 2016 .
  8. The association. Association of Viennese women's shelters, accessed on November 29, 2015 .
  9. Martina Ludwig-Faymann: Foreword. (PDF) In: Activity report 2012. Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2013, p. 5 , accessed on February 5, 2016 .
  10. ^ A b Antje-Kristin Baier, Bojana Gajic, Eylo Günel, Mihaela Popovici and Raffaela Wilfing: Offers from women's shelters. In: Abstract of the bachelor thesis “Offers from women's shelters”. Fachhochschule Campus Wien, 2013, accessed on February 22, 2016 .
  11. a b Andrea Brem, Carmen Dreher: Statistics of the four Viennese women's shelters 2013/2014. (PDF) In: Activity report 2013/2014. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2015, pp. 50–51 , accessed on March 1, 2016 .
  12. Saskia Aberl: Hit twice as hard. Violence against women: This is why immigrant women are particularly affected. News, January 22, 2016, accessed February 29, 2016 .
  13. a b c Elisabeth Zingl: A look at our information board. (PDF) In: Activity report 2013/2014. Verein Frauenhäuser Wien, 2015, p. 45 , accessed on October 22, 2015 .
  14. ^ Gondi Kunz: Children as victims or witnesses of violence. (PDF) In: Activity report 2009. Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2010, pp. 39–44 , accessed on February 8, 2016 .
  15. Silvia Watzek: Shiatsu with children in the women's shelter. (PDF) (No longer available online.) In: Activity report 2007/2008. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2009, p. 27 , archived from the original on September 15, 2015 ; accessed on February 21, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.frauenhaeuser-wien.at
  16. Lisa Hagleitner: Establishment of a psychotherapeutic group of boys. (PDF) In: Activity report 2006. Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2007, pp. 14–15 , accessed on February 8, 2016 .
  17. Youth work of the men's counseling service in Vienna: gender-reflective work with boys and boys, prevention and intervention. (PDF) In: Annual report of the men's counseling Vienna 2014. Men's counseling Vienna, p. 24 , accessed on March 1, 2016 .
  18. Ingrid Bammer, Marion Geisler: Male adolescents between 14 and 18 years in the women's shelter. (PDF) (No longer available online.) In: Activity report 2010. Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2011, pp. 21–24 , archived from the original on June 17, 2012 ; accessed on February 8, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.frauenhaeuser-wien.at
  19. Martina Hopp: We look back on 10 years of the 4th Vienna Women's Refuge! (PDF) In: Activity report 2012. Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2013, p. 16 , accessed on February 8, 2016 .
  20. The team of advisors. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, accessed on February 8, 2016 .
  21. The offer of process support. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, accessed on February 8, 2016 .
  22. The team at the counseling center: The path to accessibility is tough. (PDF) In: Activity report 2013/2014. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2015, pp. 22-24 , accessed on February 6, 2016 .
  23. Aftercare area. Aftercare housing - an independent work area within the women's shelter work. (PDF) In: Activity report 2006. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2007, pp. 10–13 , accessed on February 8, 2016 .
  24. Michaela Isamberth-Braunstein: Statistics transition living area 2013/2014. (PDF) In: Activity report 2013/2014. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2015, pp. 61–63 , accessed on February 5, 2016 .
  25. Judith Berger, Sunita Bosnic-Pilipovic: transitional living area 2010: And again and again - crisis work. (PDF) (No longer available online.) In: Activity report 2010. Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2011, p. 31 , archived from the original on June 17, 2012 ; accessed on February 8, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.frauenhaeuser-wien.at
  26. Doris Hämmerle: Parents advice according to § 95 Abs. 1a AusStrG. (PDF) In: Activity report 2013/2014. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2015, pp. 39–40 , accessed on March 1, 2016 .
  27. ^ Heinz Hofbauer, Sylvia Horn, Michaela Schertler: Cooperation Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser and waff. (PDF) In: Activity report 2012. Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2013, pp. 29–30 , accessed on February 27, 2016 .
  28. Irma Lechner: Jobseekers in the women's refuge - a successful cooperation with the Vienna Employee Promotion Fund (waff). In: Activity report 2009. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2010, pp. 12–14 , accessed on February 18, 2016 .
  29. ^ A b Andrea Brem: Public Relations. (PDF) In: Activity report 2013/2014. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2015, pp. 73–76 , accessed on February 5, 2016 .
  30. 30 years of women's shelters in Vienna - conference report on the occasion of the conference on April 9 and 10, 2008 in the Vienna City Hall. (PDF; 543 KB) In: Frauenhaeuser-wien.at. 2008, p. 20 ff. , Archived from the original on April 29, 2016 ; accessed on October 16, 2019 .
  31. Martina Ludwig-Faymann: Foreword. (PDF) In: Activity report 2011. Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2012, p. 5 , accessed on March 2, 2016 .
  32. Martina Ludwig-Faymann: Foreword. (PDF) In: Activity report 2013/2014. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2015, p. 5 , accessed on February 6, 2016 .
  33. Andrea Brem: When self-determination gets lost. (PDF) In: Activity report 2013/2014. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2015, p. 13 , accessed on February 6, 2016 .
  34. Public Relations. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, accessed on February 15, 2016 .
  35. Advertising campaign. Association of Wiener Frauenhäuser, accessed on February 15, 2016 .
  36. Irma Lechner: "Women for Women": Programs for women and girls at risk in Ukraine. (PDF) In: Activity report 2012. Verein Wiener Frauenhäuser, 2013, pp. 26–28 , accessed on February 22, 2016 .