Violence against women is the most extreme violation of women’s human rights. Although high levels of violence against women have been detected, it remains a phenomenon that is hard to observe, not only in Slovakia but throughout Europe and on the global scale. The majority of violent crimes against women take place in the home, behind closed doors, with no witnesses besides children. These children are often also victims, either of direct violence or the environment in which they grow up. The sensitivity and difficulty of this topic have for a long time made it a taboo that has only received attention in public policy in the last decade.
In an effort to change this adverse situation and to establish a comprehensive and systematic response to the problem, the government of the Slovak Republic adopted three materials intended to address the problem of violence against women. These are the documents National Strategy for the Prevention and Elimination of Violence against Women and in Families (2004), National Action Plan (NAP) for the Prevention and Elimination of Violence against Women 2005–2008 (2005) and National Action Plan for the Prevention and Elimination of violence against Women 2009–2012.
Despite the continuing implementation of tasks under previous action plans and a definite movement in the matter of violence against women in recent years, it is impossible to avoid the conclusion that Slovakia still has no coordinated system for providing assistance to women who experience violence or for primary prevention of such violence. The objective of the present NAP is to design, implement and coordinate a comprehensive, nationwide policy on the prevention and elimination of violence against women.
The government approved the National Action Plan for the Prevention and Elimination of Violence against Women 2014–2019 at its session on 18 December 2013.
National Action Plan for the Prevention and Elimination of Violence against Women 2014–2019
National Action Plan for the prevention and elimination of violence against women for the years 2009-2012
