MTDF JSS is partnering with the Victimology Society of Serbia to ensure sustainability and local ownership of the results achieved in the improvement of victim support system in Serbia. One of the activities is focused on dissemination of analytic documents prepared by the MTDF JSS and advocate for implementation of recommendations among relevant stakeholders.
To enable regional comparison and exchange of experience the Victimology Society of Serbia organized in December 2017 regional workshop on the victims' protection. The aim of the workshop was sharing experiences, know-how, common challenges, good practice, and obstacles in establishing victim and witness support and practical work with victims and witnesses in region. In addition, participants discussed funding mechanisms and networking, cooperation and coordination of victim support services in countries in region.
The workshop participants were from victim and witness support services from the region: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia. Participants are representatives of the different services: services for victims and witnesses in the prosecutors' offices, services for victims and witnesses in the courts and CSOs.
The workshop was opportunity to present analytic documents prepared in Serbia: Funding opportunities of victim support services and possible models of coordination of victim support. Discussion was based on a set of questions in order to enable participants' exchange about existing funding mechanisms, possible ways of networking, coordination matter, the model of sharing information and the model of join activities through project funding, campaigns etc.
Main conclusions from the workshop are:
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the current systems for victim support are differently developed in the region e.g. Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia have more developed system than Serbia and Macedonia, but all countries should improve current system and increase capacities of service providers;
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at the beginning in all countries services were focused on victims of wars;
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in all countries support is provided by both CSO and state institutions. There is a need for their networking and more secure connection;
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in all countries the funding of victim support organizations was initially project based and later in some countries there was a change;
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Croatia's experience as a member of the EU is particularly important for countries in the region, regarding the development of a victim system in EU accession process;
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there is a need for region cooperation in more systematic way e.g. regional platform for cooperation, including coordination mechanisms, model of sharing information and joint activities;
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the workshop gave overview of victim support system in region and there is a need for comprehensive comparative analyses based on the complex methodology that will provide a detailed comparison of the victims support system in the region.
The information of the workshops had good media coverage: newspaper Politika, TV RTS, N1, and Kopernicus. Also, all important information, including book of the abstract, are available on internet page of Victimology Society of Serbia
www.vds.rs and Facebook and twitter of VDS.
In line with the conclusions from the workshop Victimology society of Serbia initiated preparation of the Comparative analysis and benchmarking of victim support systems in the Western Balkan countries with. A comparative analysis and benchmarking includes the following Western Balkan countries: Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Macedonia. As a part of this activity, Victimology society of Serbia will conduct the survey which will provide data on service providers in the given countries, organization of victims support system, funding mechanism in each country, and cooperation and coordination of service providers.