Domestic Violence
Our women’s committee chose “violence” as a main theme for the year 1999 and held a conference on domestic violence in Haifa 21-23 June. The conference was sponsored by the Department for Mission and Development, Women in Church and Society, Lutheran World Federation.
Stemming from a pressing need for investigation and education, the subject of domestic violence emerged in the light of increasing incidents of abuse and violence reported in the media and narrated by individual women. The 1999 programs included one-day encounters, women’s activities in the congregations, and the three day summer conference.
Eighty-five women participated in the conference in Haifa. Seventy-three were Lutherans representing all of the congregations in the ELCJHL. The others represented Roman Catholic, Greek Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Episcopal Churches from Haifa.
The guest speakers included a woman lawyer, Ms. Halima Abu Sulb, who is a Muslim. She is a feminist suffragist and works at the Women’s Center for social and legal counseling in Jerusalem. The other guest speaker was Ms. Rana Salfity, a Christian, who is a social worker who works in the counseling and rehabilitation field with battered women. A full report of the conference is available.