By The Star Staff
The Office of the Women’s Advocate (OPM by its Spanish initials) and the Psychology Association of Puerto Rico (APPR) have signed a collaborative agreement to work together on activities such as workshops, educational panel discussions, and symposia or conferences aimed at professionals, the community, schools and other entities to raise awareness about gender violence.
Likewise, during the international campaign 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence, from Nov. 25, International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, to Dec. 10, Human Rights Day, the organizations will carry out a range of activities and information capsules on issues related to domestic violence, which will be transmitted through their digital platforms.
“Tolerating gender-based violence contributes to the disintegration of the family, to the promotion of criminality and to the weakening of the values of human coexistence,” said Madeline Bermúdez Sanabria, the acting women’s advocate. “That is why this agreement between OPM and APPR is so important, in order to provide all women victims with an accessible and supportive resource. We also intend for this union to serve as a working model for other government agencies, municipalities and private entities that are committed to developing actions aimed at solving the problems faced by women in our society. The main objective of the OPM is to ensure that women enjoy a better quality of life.”
APPR President Ángel R. Comas Nazario noted that the mission of the association’s Violence Prevention Committee “is to dialogue and critically reflect on issues related to violence in Puerto Rico and its prevention, to examine and rethink the dimensions of violence from a transdisciplinary approach responding to the current situation in our country, educate on alternatives for the understanding, management and prevention of violence, and collaborate with groups and individuals in activities to promote nonviolence strategies.”
Victims of gender-based violence or those who know someone who is going through such a situation can contact OPM’s confidential, around-the-clock support line to receive free guidance by calling 787-722-2977.