The National Council for the Survivors of Sexual Violence in War, which is headed by the President of the Republic of Kosovo, Mrs. Atifete Jahjaga, in cooperation with the Legal Office of the Office of the Prime Minister and the Kosovo Centre for the Rehabilitation of Torture Victims, held the three-day workshop of the Government Working Group for the drafting and finalization of the necessary normative legal acts for the recognition and verification process of the status of the victims of sexual violence during the war.
Participants at the workshop, were the members of the Government Working Group, representatives of the Office of the President and of relevant institutions for the implementation of this law, as well as representatives of non-governmental organizations which offer professional services for this category of civilian war victims and representatives from international institutions.
The workshop had as aim the compilation of the necessary documents that will enable the application and identification of referral mechanisms until the process of recognition and verification of the status of the survivors of sexual violence during the war, being based also on the International Protocol for Documentation and Investigation as well as on the best practices obtained from the region.
The need was emphasized for this process to provide the most possible professional, facilitating and dignified approach in order to motivate this sensitive category of the society to be beneficiaries of personal pensions and benefits foreseen by the law.
The documents and recommendations arising from this workshop will serve for the finalization of the drafting of the necessary normative legal acts to implement the Law on the Status and Rights of Martyrs, Invalids, Veterans, Members of the Kosovo Liberation Army, Sexual Violence Victims of War, Civilian Victims and their Families, by which the status of the victims of sexual violence during the war in Kosovo is recognized legally. This workshop was made possible by the Embassy of the United Kingdom.