YEREVAN – On Thursday, November 25, the Tufenkian Foundation will unveil in Yerevan an exhibit of artwork by children of families suffering from domestic violence.
The exhibit is being organized with the participation of World Vision and the Charitable Roundtable of the World Council of Churches, and is being held to mark the annual “International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.” The event is also in memory of Zaruhi Petrosyan, the Yerevan woman who recently died as a result of domestic violence.
The exhibit will open at the Moscow House, Argishti Street #7, 3rd floor, at 1:00 pm. Opening ceremonies will include remarks from several dignitaries and public figures committed to this cause.
Later that day, the Tufenkian Foundation and ‘Zangakatun’ Social Services NGO will join many citizens and the Coalition to Stop Violence against Women, in a march in memory of victims of domestic violence.
These activities aim to raise awareness of domestic violence, which affects numerous women and children throughout Armenia. “We need to acknowledge this problem in our society, in order to be able to remedy it,” noted Tufenkian Foundation country director Mary Matosian. “Domestic violence is aggravated especially by poverty and social dislocation, and in this respect Armenia is not spared.”
Despite overwhelming evidence of rampant domestic violence, Armenia’s authorities and media continue to deny, ignore, or otherwise downplay the problem, assuming that such matters are best handled privately, within the family.
Earlier this year, the Tufenkian Foundation, in partnership with USAID and the Armenian International Women’s Association (AIWA) set up a Women’s Support Center in Yerevan’s Shengavit district. The center is run by the ‘Zangakatun’ Social Services NGO, and provides a variety of support services to abused women and their families.
For more information on the exhibit and related activities, please contact the Tufenkian Foundation – in Yerevan 010 -53-23-29, in the US (201) 221-1055, ext.367.