520 professionals to receive domestic violence training

Malta has been awarded an EU co-funded project that will see 520 professionals - including police officers, psychologists, judges, magistrates social workers, nurses and PSD teachers - trained on how to handle victims of domestic violence.

The first batch of training, which is being carried out by the University of Worcester, took place in May with 176 professionals and two more programmes will take place this month and in October.

An inter-ministerial steering group, with the involvement of the police and the Commission on Domestic Violence, will also be set up to draft a manual of procedure for professionals dealing with victims of domestic violence.

An awareness raising campaign will also be held in October and November and in 2018.

The €350,000 project, which will be 80% financed from EU funds, was launched this afternoon by equality minister Helena Dalli.

"The government has already tabled a Bill that will fully implement the Istanbul Convention on domestic violence, and our challenge will now be to put this law into practice," she said. "We are committed to tackling domestic violence, which we view as unacceptable in all forms, and our aim is to place victims at the centre of our policies."