SYOSTRI CENTER MOSCOU
P.O. Box 38, Moscow 113035, Russia
Phone/Fax: (7-095) 901-02-01
 http://www.owl.ru/eng/women/aiwo/sisters.htm 

Statistics 1998

The Center’s work is focused on:

1. psychological support for sexual assault survivors:

1. hotline service (5 days a week, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; women are provided with psychological support, medical/legal aid;

2. "face-to-face" counseling (psychological/legal/social aid);

3. support groups for women

2. educational programs:

1. preventive workshops on the issues of sexual assault (including self-defense techniques) for young people and teenagers;

2. informational meetings and training workshops on the issues of psychological support for sexual assault survivors, for experts of crisis centers, non-governmental and governmental organizations of Russia and the former Soviet Union;

3. training workshops and internship programs on sharing experience of creating a crisis center for women and its activities, for regional services, women’s NGOs of Russia and the CIS

3. collaboration with law enforcement agencies (police, prosecutors, judges)

1. participation in actions, conferences, training workshops on the issues of violence against women, women’s human rights

Women of the Center were coordinators of the following conferences and seminars:

• Women, Youth, Violence (1993);

• Violence against Women in Russia (1994);

• Women against Violence (1995);

• Helping Survivors of Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence: Interaction of Crisis Centers and Law Enforcement Agencies (1996), organized in collaboration with the European Association of Policewomen;

• International Conference on Trafficking in Women, organized in collaboration with Global Survival Network (GSN) and International League for Human Rights (ILHR)

Counselors of the Center participated in educational research project on violence against women in Russia coordinated by Russia Association of Crisis Centers. They also participated in actions such as protesting against war conflicts and violence as "Women in Black", "White Scarf" (1994, 1995, 1996)

5. collaboration with mass media focused on changing public attitude toward sexual assault survivors as well as improving their status in society; setting psychological and legal conditions for rehabilitation of sexual assault survivors

1. participation in publishing and dissemination of printed materials on the issues of violence against women, such as:

• "The Power of Touch" (poetic therapy for incest survivors);

• "How to Create a Crisis Center for Women";

• "How It Happens" (for teenagers and young people)’

• "Who is to Blame? What to Do?" (for sexual assault survivors, their friends and relatives).

Five permanent and 8 part-time women work at the Syostri center.

Center "SYOSTRI"
Statistics 1998

 Four hundred and eighty (432) calls from victims of sexual violence were evaluated: in all, eighteen concerned rape of men and in all of the remaining cases, the victims were women or children (410 calls).