Clece adds its voice to the social clamour against gender-based violence
Clece Social, Clece’s social project, joined in the commemoration of International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women through its two awareness-raising campaigns. These involved clients, employees, collaborators and those who use its services.
For a third year, Clece has undertaken a specific campaign for 25th November and commenced two initiatives: a campaign in Andalusia and the Canary Islands called “No te Calles” [Don’t be Silent], while in the other regions they continued with “Una Vida sin Violencia, Una Vida con Respeto” [A Life without Violence, A Life with Respect]. More than 45,000 people were involved in these activities, raising their voices against male violence and showing support for victims.
José Andrés Elizaga, Clece’s Director of Communications commented “One of the social project’s aims is to raise awareness around the difficult reality faced by the most vulnerable collectives. Women who suffer abuse constitute one of the most unprotected groups. We have therefore spent three years promoting the 25th November campaign. But our work is not limited to one day. Our commitment to fight against gender-based violence extends throughout the year, with continuous awareness-raising activities, and also through our work to achieve the integration of women victims into the workplace.”
Clece uses very different settings for its campaigns, right across our geography…including hospitals, nursery schools, care homes for the elderly, work centres, offices and public entities. They involve different activities such as rallies, workshops, chats, murals, placards and ribbons, information stands and materials sharing.
Break the Silence
Last week, as part of the campaign called “No te calles”, different activities took place in Andalusia and the Canary Islands. In Tenerife, entities such as the Canary Islands’ Office of the President, the La Candelaria Hospital and the San Sebastián Health Centre in La Orotava got together. In Las Palmas it was the Island Maternity Hospital, the Negrin Hospital, and the municipal Home Help Service. As a symbol of the need to end the silence, some rallies were accompanied by the sound of whistles. These included rallies of elderly residents at the Acaymo centre at the Cathedral of San Cristóbal de La Laguna and by Clece workers at Clece’s headquarters in the Canary Islands.
There was also a big welcome in Andalusia. The Terrecárdenas and La Inmaculada Hospitals, the Poniente Hospital in Almeria, and the Puerta del Mar Hospital in Cadiz set up information stands. At the University of Malaga, they distributed more than 3,000 stickers and 1,500 glasses and organized a photo call for all those who could “lend a hand” and write a message. At other locations, such as the Andalucía Students Residence and at nursery schools, there were workshops on equality and the prevention of gender-based violence for students and professionals. In Cordoba, the Municipal
Sports Hall of Montilla and Home Help Services of La Rambla, Doña Mencía, Torrecampo, Pozoblanco and Rute were involved. At the Montilla Sports Hall, the zone’s clubs staged women’s football and basketball matches in support of equality and the rejection of gender-based violence. In Seville, “No te calles” arrived at the Torneo Business Park and the Faculty of Law where Clece participated in seminars on “New Forms of Gender-Based Violence”.
A Life Without Violence, A Life With Respect
The campaign Una Vida Sin Violencia, Una Vida con Respeto was rolled out to many other points across the geography and included a wide-ranging program of awareness-raising activities. Seminars were held in Barcelona in collaboration with the ARED foundation. These explained its program “Integración sociolaboral de mujeres víctimas de violencia de género” [The Workplace Integration of Women who are victims of Gender-Based Violence]. Seminars also took place in Valencia next to the Valencia General Hospital. These provided the chance to reflect on the role of men in the struggle against gender-based violence. Campaign information and materials were shared at the Elda Hospital and Alicante General Hospital.
The activities involving children were especially moving. The Globo Municipal School of Valladolid organised the initiative “Plumas para la igualdad” [Quills for Equality]. They staged three awareness-raising activities in collaboration with families and were supported by help from the Education, Infancy and Equality Department of Valladolid Town Hall and the La Rondilla Asociación de Mujeres [La Rondilla Women’s Association]. At the Municipal Nursery School, Fantasía de Huerta del Rey, a group of victims of gender-based violence were invited to tell the story “Rosa Caramelo” using chinese shadow figures.
The elderly have also played their part. The Atsobakar care home and day centre at Lasaete-Oria invited residents, family members and workers at the centre, the women’s civic centre and the “Ganchineando Estella” group to create 20×20 knitted and crocheted pictures. The Venta de Baños care home celebrated an inter-generational event with the children from the primary section of the Sagrado Corazón school in the Palencia area. In Murcia, there was a rally in the Town Hall Square, where a manifesto was read out.
Of course, Clece employees were also active participants. In Barcelona, Clece employees at the Bellvitge University Hospital, the Broggi Hospital, the Institut Catalá de Salut [Catalan Health Institute], and Transporte Escolar Consell [Shcool Transport Department] for the area sported white and lilac bibs on day 24 to highlight the issue. The majority of Clece working centres took a few moments out to take a photo.
The Fruits of Commitment
Women who are victims of gender-based violence constitute a collective that is a focus for Clece’s social project, Clece Social. The company is especially aware of this group. In addition to managing refuge houses for public authorities, Clece develops awareness-raising initiatives such as its Integration Forums. These are organised by different Autonomous Communities and provide a space to talk about the issues faced by this collective. It is involved in important institutional projects such as “Hay Salida” [There is A Way Out]. The company also makes an effort to integrate people from this collective into the workforce. Currently, more than 180 women who have suffered male violence form an active part of the Clece workforce. Clece’s work to support and integrate victims of gender-based violence received recognition from the Spanish Prime Minister in 2016. It was also the only company to be invited by the UN to present its model for the integration of women who are victims of gender-based violence.