In 2024, 3,500 victims of domestic violence have “downloaded” the panic button application, announced today from Nicosia, the Minister of Social Cohesion and Family, Sofia Zaharakis, during the signing of the Memorandum of Cooperation between Greece and Cyprus to combat domestic and gender-based violence .

He also mentioned that the panic button was hit 400 times during this year, to point out that “so 400 times we prevented the worst, with the immediate activation of the police. Immediately after the victim, if he decides to do so, he can go to the part of lawsuits, lawsuits, if he wants to leave the house, he can stay in a hostel, while he starts receiving the Minimum Guaranteed Income.” He also said that 195 men have “downloaded” this particular application, since the panic button can be obtained by any victim of domestic violence, whether male or female.

The cooperation memorandum between Greece and Cyprus

The Memorandum of Cooperation, signed on the part of Cyprus by the Minister of Justice and Public Order of Cyprus Marios Hartsiotis, concerns the prevention and combating of gender-based violence against women and is an important step towards strengthening the cooperation between the two countries in the field gender equality and the protection of human rights.

Sofia Zaharakis, after congratulating the minister, Marios Hartsiotis and the partners of the two ministries, for the long-term and loving cooperation, pointed out that “the Memorandum will not remain on paper, as there may be a woman out there right now who needs to to listen to this message and maybe make the decision, always with the help of the state and the services – and there are many services that are next to them – so that he can face this scourge of domestic violence”.

The minister reiterated the actions of the Greek Government to combat violence, which are already implemented such as the panic button, the counseling centers, the hostels, while many provisions of the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of Protection are being implemented Citizen in Greece, which has a special domestic violence center in the capital of each prefecture.

Also, Sofia Zaharaki argued that “our services can and will cooperate for the implementation of best practice exchange programs, co-education, the creation of protocols that can help as well as for separate actions for each woman and her child as well as for every victim of domestic violence”.

The minister pledged that what the Memorandum provides for “will not be mere words but will be put into practice and indeed within a reasonable period of time”, while she wished that this initiative could “be the beginning of a very substantial cooperation, which illuminates every aspect difficult situations that a victim of domestic violence may experience”.

Sofia Zaharaki, praised the importance of cooperation between the two countries as gaps in the process can be filled, which were found in Greece with the case of a girl who died outside the police station a few months ago.

Concluding, the minister referred to the importance of prevention, through the educational programs carried out in schools, pointing out that “we can catch the thread of prevention very early and talk about healthy relationships where the equal treatment of the friend, the partner, the person who you have chosen to be by your side, to be something that has been cultivated from an early age.”