Legal and psychological assistance
If you find it hard to deal with the Polish reality, have problems in your family life, experience violence or if your rights are violated, do not hesitate to ask for help. There are centres providing legal and psychological assistance all over Poland, in almost all major cities. They include both public institutions (among others, City Social Welfare Centres or legal advice bureaus at Regional Courts), non-governmental organizations and university legal clinics. There are also 24-hour counseling and information helplines available. The list of institutions, including contact details, has been included at the end of the text.
Free legal advice bureaus and psychological support centres provide assistance to women regardless of their residence status. The establishments are available to all people without exception who experience violence, restriction of personal liberty and violation of their rights. They provide counseling free of charge. Unfortunately, the only language spoken at most assistance centres is Polish.
Legal assistance
The institutions and organizations whose contact details have been included in the Institutions tab provide assistance within the following scope:
- legal counseling with regard to family and guardianship law
- protection against domestic violence
- counseling and elaboration of statements of claim and pleadings in divorce and separation cases
- counseling and elaboration of statements of claim and pleadings in maintenance cases
- counseling with regard to separate estates in matrimony
- elaboration of letters, applications and complaints
- some of the organizations may also represent beneficiaries in court
Psychological assistance
Psychological counseling centres and women’s support organizations may help you with respect to:
- free psychological counseling
- participation in support groups
- assistance to persons experiencing abuse
- telephone and e-mail consultations
Counseling organizations in Poland guarantee anonymity. Your data is protected and, unless you wish for it, no-one will find out that you are using lawyer’s or psychologist’s assistance.
What does "to be a victim of violence" mean?
Everyone, regardless of their gender, age, education or intelligence, may experience violence. Everyone may fall victim to aggression, at work, at school or at home. Men, women and children all experience agression, but the alarming thing is that 95% of victims of domestic violence are women. Migrant women, especially spouses of citizens of European Union member states or women residing in these member states within the framework of family reunification, are at a particular risk of violence due to the fact that their residence status depends on that of their spouses/partners.
Violence may assume various forms. It is often identified with physical abuse only, whereas psychological aggression may also have significant consequences and it should not be disregarded. Ask yourself the following questions. If you answer “Yes” to one or more of them, you probably experienced, or are still experiencing, violence and you should consider asking for help.
Does your partner:
- demand that you limit your contacts with your beloved ones, friends and acquaintances?
- treat you in a way that is painful to you?
- verbally abuse you?
- push, slap, hit or tug at you?
- force you to do things that you find degrading?
- fully control all your home spending and make you ask for money?
- destroy your property during outbursts of anger?
- think, and make you think, that all bad things that happen to your family are your fault?
- think you deserve aggressive treatment?
- force you to have sexual intercourse even though you don’t feel like it?
- make threats that he will hurt or kill you or your children?
- think that he does all of the above for your own good?
[based on: http://niebieskalinia.infohttp://niebieskalinia.info]
If you want to change your situation, improve your standard of living and overcome violence, you should begin by realizing what your rights are. In case of victims of violence, the first step is to become acquainted with the Polish Declaration on the Prevention of Domestic Violence, as quoted below.
Polish Declaration on the Prevention of Domestic Violence
- Every person has the right to life in family environment free of violence which constitutes a violation of the law and of personal rights.
- The person experiencing abuse may not be blamed for it.
- Children and adolescents have the right to grow up in a safe environment free of violence and adults have the obligation to guarantee it to them.
- Every person experiencing violence has the right to legal, social, psychological and medical assistance not infringing upon their personal dignity.
- Every person has the right to knowledge required to deal with violence.
- Every person has the right to counteract domestic violence.
- Every person has the obligation to provide assistance to victims of domestic violence.
The declaration applies to all persons residing in Poland, temporarily or permanently, regardless of their residence status and citizenship. If your rights enumerated in the declaration have been violated, you are entitled to information, support and protection.
You need to know that in 2012, Poland signed the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence and in February 2015, the Sejm of the Republic of Poland adopted the Act on ratification of the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence.