NCFA matrix calls for appointing a designated judicial body and a public prosecutor for considering family violence cases
08-16-2020
August 16, 2020
Amman – In a letter addressed to the Prime Minster, NCFA introduced a matrix that emphasizes the need to designate a competent judicial body to consider family violence cases, and a public prosecutor to investigate cases of violence in the Family Protection Department.
The matrix, which NCFA recently submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers, addressed particular priorities and challenges related to family protection including human resources, financial and logistical support, partnership, coordination and awareness in addition to legislative and legal frameworks.
According to the matrix, which Al-Ghad obtained a copy of, the priorities pertaining to the legislative and legal framework revolve around the need to issue the necessary regulations and instructions for implementing the provisions of the Protection against Family Violence Law, particularly in light of the recent spate of family violence incidents that the Kingdom has witnessed resulting in the deaths of children, women and young girls.
In the letter, NCFA indicated that “Jordan was proactive in taking measures to ensure the protection of the family and the child. However, the last year witnessed an unacceptable regression, as 6 children were killed at the hands of their families despite the fact that some of those families already had files in state institutions.”
The matrix also called for setting a human resource system that defines job security criteria and parameters for the trained and qualified staff members concerned with dealing with violence cases, especially within the Family Protection Department, the Ministry of Social Development, and the Ministry of Health, while providing them with the necessary incentives, and issuing a regulation for professionalizing social work for social service providers.
The letter also called for maintaining 24/7 service operations at social service offices in the Family Protection Department Units covering all governorates to respond to the increasing cases of violence.
It also recommended the need to supply the social service offices in the Family Protection Department and the home shelters affiliated with the Ministry of Social Development with a sufficient number of qualified social workers, in order to enhance their response to the increasing number of violence cases they are attending to, and to provide the psychiatric and forensic clinics with psychologists to be able to work around the clock and in all governorates.
Recommendation also included the preparation of a national standardized training program for all employees working within the family protection system, based on training needs and in line with the roles and responsibilities of service providers and the needs of all target groups included in the national frameworks and standards so as to come up with an articulated national training plan.
On the logistical side, the matrix called for the provision of shelter services for cases in need of protection in the southern region, and also shelter services for emergency protection cases based on clearly defined conditions and criteria, recommending the enforcement of the exemption decision concerning family violence victims referred by the Family Protection Department and increasing its coverage of health procedures and services. In addition, the matrix also recommended the establishment of programs to rehabilitate perpetrators of violence during their trial and before their reintegration into the family.
Recommendation also included seeking funding and financial allocations to support the implementation of national action plans and programs for institutions involved in handling cases of violence and securing appropriate buildings for all service providers.
Furthermore, the letter requested the Cabinet of Ministers to oblige the concerned institutions to undertake executive measures to fulfil the mandates and responsibilities entrusted to them and included in the National Framework for Family Protection against Violence and to put all service providers, including health, social, and educational institutions, under obligation to report cases of violence in accordance with the institutional frameworks and procedures.
The matrix stressed the need to strengthen coordination between the Sharia judiciary and the Family Protection Department when issuing guardianship and custody decisions so as to substantiate the occurrence of a case of violence against the child involved in a custody case. It also underscored the commitment of government institutions in the implementation of the automated procedures system for dealing with family violence cases.
In the field of awareness, the matrix called for the institutionalization of the parental awareness program in the ministries of Education, Social Development, Health and Awqaf and Islamic Affairs (financially, technically, programmatically, and administratively) and the development and implementation of a national campaign to prevent violence.
