2023-04-29 09:18:30
We’ll call her “Norah”. It’s an assumed name, because she wishes to remain anonymous. She lived through 18 years of domestic violence. She agreed to meet with us to testify. Originally from Morocco, it was when she arrived in Belgium – with her ex-husband – that the first signs of domestic violence appeared. “It starts with all that is verbal, there are insults“, recalls Norah.”I have no money, my passport is confiscated. When he leaves he locks me up and I don’t have the house keys“.
Very quickly, the violence becomes physical. “They were blows… I was afraid for my physical integrity, I was afraid of dying. Then I stayed locked up until the traces of violence disappeared, the bruises or the scratches. Sometimes it wasn’t about me. But when someone breaks a vase, right in front of you, into a thousand pieces, the message gets through“.
Today, Norah is rebuilding. She is finalizing her TFE (End of Study Work) because she is completing training to become a specialized educator. If this reconstruction is possible, it is because his word has been heard, especially in a house of welcome. It is one of the solutions to get out of the cycle of violence and to be accompanied.
On the justice and police side, cooperation is improving. But we still need to train more in listening. And the progress of a complaint is still sometimes too long.
The Listening to Violence Conjugales number is 0800/30.030.
1682789445
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