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Helping Female Victims Of Domestic Violence

McGuinty Government Supports South Asian Women’s Centre

June 22, 2011

News

Ontario’s South Asian community will receive better help to break the cycle of domestic violence.

The South Asian Women’s Centre will create an information and training guide that addresses challenges such as forced marriages.

This new initiative builds on the Province’s comprehensive strategy to stop domestic violence and to ensure victims receive the supports and services they need, when they need them.

Quotes

“Domestic violence affects all cultures and all communities but each community has its own specialized needs. These resources, personalized for women in the South Asian community, will provide support for women in difficult situations.”
— Chris Bentley, Attorney General

“The South Asian Women’s Centre has been providing important services for many years to women in their community. This funding will help the centre and its dedicated staff provide comfort and security to women in their time of need.”
— Eric Hoskins, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration

“This new support builds on our government’s comprehensive Domestic Violence Action Plan by providing the best resources possible to assist victims of domestic violence in the South Asian community. This additional support will enable the dedicated volunteers to reach out to even more women.”
— Laurel Broten, Minister of Children and Youth Services and Minister Responsible for Women’s Issues

“We are extremely grateful to the Ontario government for this funding which will allow us to develop tools and tactics to help the victims of violence and abuse in our community in a way that makes sense to them and that works for them.”
— Kripa Sekhar, Executive Director, South Asian Women’s Centre

Quick Facts

• The South Asian Women’s Centre is receiving a $150,000 grant from Ontario’s Victims’ Justice Fund.
• According to Statistics Canada, South Asians are the largest visible minority group in Ontario, accounting for 28.9 per cent of all visible minorities in the province.
• The South Asian Women’s Centre will conduct focus groups targeting police, shelter workers and Victim/Witness Assistance Program staff and others to develop and promote the new materials.
• The guide will be translated into five South Asian languages and made available on the South Asian Women’s Centre’s website. Although it will be specific to the needs of South Asian women, it could be used as a model to develop products to serve other communities across Ontario.
• In December 2010, the federal government cut $44 million in funding to Ontario community agencies that help new Canadians integrate, including the South Asian Women’s Centre.
• The Province took action after federal cuts to services for newcomers, providing one-time funding to assist community organizations hardest hit by the federal cuts, including the South Asian Women’s Centre.

Learn More

Learn more about Ontario’s Family Court Support Worker program.

Read about what the government is doing to help victims of violence.

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Contacts

Nauman Khan
Minister's Office
416-326-1785

Brendan Crawley
Communications Branch
416-326-2210

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