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AMMAN — Under the patronage of HRH Princess Basma, the Jordanian National Commission for Women (JNCW) on Tuesday launched the map of legal aid providers for women.
During the launch ceremony, which was held at the Queen Zein Al Sharaf Institute, Princess Basma, JNCW president, stressed the importance of the map in combating violence against women and girls, which affects their life economically, socially and mentally, and limits their participation in the national development.
She said that providing legal aid for women contributes to upholding the principles of justice in society, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.
Citing UN Women figures, the princess said that one in three women worldwide experiences violence at least once in her lifetime and a large percentage of them do not seek legal assistance or resort to any legal means of protection.
Princess Basma referred to the results of the 2023 Jordan Health and Population Survey, which showed that 34 per cent of women and girls subjected to violence sought legal assistance.
"This underscores the need for greater efforts to help them access prevention and protection services provided by official and civil society institutions, including legal aid services," she added.
JNCW Secretary-General Maha Ali said that launching the map in the governorates comes within the framework of the JNCW's work to support national efforts to enhance women's access to justice, in line with the National Strategy for Women 2020-2025.
Ali added that the map comes as part of the project of raising social awareness on legal aid services, which is implemented by Justice Centre for Legal Aid (JCLA) with the support of the Government of Cyprus.
The map aims to enhance women access to legal aid services and raise their awareness on service providers, geographical distribution, and types of services, according to Ali.
Justice Ministry Secretary-General Walid Kanakrieh reiterated that the Constitution guarantees every citizen a fair trial and access to justice, while the Code of Criminal Procedure guarantees the right to self-defence and the right to legal advice.
Cyprus Ambassador to Jordan Sevag Avedissian said that the equality agenda is of great importance to the Cypriot government, which is working with its partners in Jordan on women's issues, stressing the importance of the map in providing the necessary tools to help women and girls access legal aid services.