POST CONFERENCE PRESS RELEASE
VSE Annual Conference 2019
‘Victim Recovery: A Road of Many Routes’
250 people packed the European Parliament in Strasbourg for two days of talks, workshops, interactive plenaries & more
Tuesday, June 18, 2019 — Brussels // On 12-13 June, ‘France Victimes’ hosted Victim Support Europe’s Annual Conference 2019 ‘Victim recovery: A Road of Many Routes’. It brought together over 250 key players working with victims of crime: victim support workers as well as practitioners, researchers, experts, academics, government officials and criminal justice officials.
The event was organised under the High Patronage of Mr. Emmanuel Macron.
The aim of the meeting was to exchange best practices and experiences related to the many forms support that exist and how it is provided to victims.
Speakers offered their insights and experience, as well as trends and actionable solutions on the most important issues facing victims’ rights today, including innovative ways for victims to get justice, and numerous paths to reach support and recovery.
“We were very excited to offer this outstanding group of dynamic, leading-edge speakers in Strasbourg this year,” stated VSE’s Executive Director Levent Altan. “This year’s line-up showcased the best from in and out of the field, demonstrating the sector’s ability to innovate and remain responsive to changing circumstances, while learning from frontline practitioners and thought leaders that are making further steps to better implement victims’ rights”.
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As we have received an impressive number of workshops, we tried and succeeded in securing space for running 20 labs during the conference. Here is the hands-on quick dive into various topics: the denunciation of incest, a route to effective and quality services, individual needs assessment methodology for child victims of crime, women as victims of partner violence, the specific vulnerability of victims abroad, violence against women and access to justice, implementing the EU Victims’ Rights Directive, sexual violence against children, supporting victims of terrorism and mass victimisation – success through partnerships, victims and mass media, supporting dogs for crime victims, the development of new tools for victim support: socio-aesthetics and the project Gépalemojust, a victim’s journey from crime to compensation, planning for victim support response to a terrorist attack, data protection and much more.
One of the highlights of the conference programme was the Labrador dog LOL, France’s 1st “judicial” support dog who enabled a child victim who had previously refused to speak to any law enforcement officials to feel comfortable enough to do so. Lol together with A&P Sommer Foundation and Courthouse Dogs Foudation conducted a workshop ‘Supporting dogs for crime victims: adapting North American models to France and Facility Dogs’.
The influential group of conference speakers included:
Joëlle Milquet – Special Adviser to the President of the European Commission for the compensation of victims of crime
Chantal Cutajar – Deputy Mayor of Strasbourg
Katarzyna Janicka-Pawlowska – European Commission DG Justice
João Lázaro: President, Victim Support Europe
Levent Altan: Executive Director, Victim Support Europe
Tom O’Malley, barrister
Elisabeth Pelsez, Inter-ministerial delegate for victim support (France)
Frédéric Almendros, prosecutor
Ellen O’Neill-Stephens – Courthouse Dogs Foundation
Stéphanie Tomé, expert psychologist at SDIS 68, National Federation of France’s Fire-fighters (France)
Mafalda Valério, Project Manager – APAV
Richard Olszewski – Vice-President of Victim Support Europe and Vice-President of France Victimes
Albin Dearing – European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights
Bruno Brito, Psychologist, Manager of RAFAVHVT, APAV
Thierry Baubet, French National Resources and Resilience Centre
Héloïse Squelbut, Coordinator of the North-East branch of the French Institute for Restorative Justice (France)
Ruth Shrimpling, Policy Officer – Victim Support Europe
Jérôme Bertin, Executive Director of France Victimes
Alain Boulay – APEV, Support for Parents of Missing Children
Pierre-Etienne Denis – FENVAC, National Federation of Victims of Catastrophes
Guillaume Denoix de Saint Marc – AFVT, French Association of Victims of Terrorism
About Victim Support Europe
Victim Support Europe is an umbrella organisation of 56 national and regional victim support organisations in 30 countries. It promotes the establishment and development of victim rights and services throughout Europe. The organisation aims to ensure that every victim in Europe is able to access information and support services in the aftermath of crime, regardless of where the victim lives or where the crime took place. Victim Support Europe also works to ensure that people affected by crime are respected, have access to strong rights and are able to make their voice heard throughout the criminal justice process.
France Victimes
France Victimes (former Inavem), created in 1986, is the national Federation of victim support associations in France (mainland and ultramarine). The Federation’s goal is to promote and develop support and assistance to victims, mediation and any other measure contributing to improve victims’ recognition.
FRANCE VICTIMES’s network represents:
– Over 130 local France Victimes associations,
– 800 reception centres, in particular within tribunals at victims of crimes support offices,
– Support for 300 000 victims per year.
The goal of France Victimes’ associations is to support globally and on a multidisciplinary level every person considering being a victim of any offence, in France or abroad. Victim support associations are available to everyone, they are all free of charge and confidential.
France Victimes is a founding member of Victim Support Europe and, as such, has been working with its European counterparts to promote and develop rights and support to victims within the European Union.
Contact
Marina Kazakova
Communications Officer, Victim Support Europe
Email: m.kazakova@victimsupporteurope.eu
Phone: +32 485 439216
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