It was in the summer of 2013 when the lawyer Calypso Gulaat that time the Deputy Mayor of the Social Solidarity of the Municipality of Thessaloniki, opened the first Hostage for battered women in the city. “At that time, few people believed in the need to create such structures. There were voices that said, “Hush, how many women will come?” he recalls. Ten years later — and the pandemic — and the tip of the iceberg of gender-based violence in the country, those voices have finally been silenced. “Today, the usefulness of such structures is not only recognized, but there is a need for even more,” she says.

He can know the needs very well. About a year ago, she moved from local government to the position of Secretary General of the Department of Demographic and Family Policy and Gender Equality, from where she oversees the entire network of structures: 44 counseling centers, 19 hostels for women victims of violence and their children, of course 24/7 hotline SOS 15900. Did this move change her point of view? “The horizon has expanded,” he replies. “It is also a bet on how to move from a smaller scale to the level of policy planning and implementation at the national level, with the ultimate goal of a better and faster response to violence.”

However, he took over during a period of heightened violence. How does he deal with it? “The number of women victims of femicide related to domestic violence has risen to 23 in 2021 based on Greek police data, of which 15 women were victims of a male perpetrator and the criterion of a rapist victim. relationships, being partners or former partners and, accordingly, for 2022, based on the same criterion, the number rises to 13. Lethal violence against women and the devaluation of human life is what stubbornly me. However, according to the statistics we collect from the SOS 15900 line, during the years of the pandemic, there may have been more cases of violence recorded, but at the same time, mouths were open. Not only the victims are complaining, but now also third parties, such as neighbors, relatives, friends.”

“Pocket Guide”.

“Not only victims, but now third parties are reporting incidents of gender-based violence,” says Calypso Gula, Secretary General of the Department of Population and Family Policy and Equality.

He addresses them new Pocket Guide to Domestic Violence, a recently launched digital app that provides information on how to properly interact with people who have been abused. The goal is not to cause additional “harm”, to victimize or even discourage the person who reports the incident they are experiencing. Calypso Gula believes that this action, which will bring tangible, concrete results, will change the situation. “Many people don’t know that people react differently to stressful and crisis situations and seek help in different ways. Or that it is useless to tell a person who has been sexually abused that “I have a friend who went through the same thing.” Or that early access to care can prevent HIV infection and unwanted pregnancies.”

In addition to information on what to do and what to say to a person who entrusts us with a case of gender-based violence, in the Guide we can also find all the services of the General Secretariat (telephone line, local counseling centers and hostels), as well as other social services.

stereotypes

If you could magically change one thing tomorrow, what would it be? “Deep-rooted stereotypes. I would like Greece, a modern and progressive European state, to be able to overcome anchors and ideologies, work systematically to minimize the weaknesses of the system so that gender equality, acceptance of diversity and inclusion of the weak become a reality. and lead to the elimination of antisocial behavior. Gender equality sometimes seems like a philosophical ideal, but there are good practices from other countries that I would like us to implement in our country. Unfortunately, this cannot be achieved with a magic wand, it is a product of information and systematic training.

Is she a feminist? “A feminist of the 21st century, a working woman who stands up for her rights. However, in the case of rights and equality, no one is spared. I do not think that men are against women, and women are against men. We are together and we state the obvious so that we can all move forward”.