The government delegate in Galicia, Pedro Blanco, said today that the Menina recognitions, granted by the Government Delegation, are this year the “best reflection of a Galicia that rejects male violence and promotes equality in all areas”. These recognitions are given annually on the occasion of the celebration of the 25N, International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, to highlight the strong commitment against male violence in the four Galician provinces. This year they reach their sixth consecutive edition.
Pedro Blanco announced today the list of people and entities recognized in Galicia with the Menina for their fight for equality. According to the decision of the jury, presided over by the government delegate, they will receive the Menina to judge Paz Filgueira; the director of the Prison Center of Teixeiro, José Angel Vázquez; the NGO valoReSC; the project ‘Mulleres de Lugo’ of the Portuguese IES ‘Anxel Fole’ and ‘Nosa Señora dos Ollos Grandes’ and the sociologist Silvia Pérez.
At the regional level, the Menina falls this year to Judge Paz Filgueira, holder for 10 years of the Court of Violence against Women of Vigo. The jury also took into account the intense work carried out by the judge in the continuous training of personnel of public administrations and State Bodies and Forces in Galicia with respect to the treatment of victims of male violence.
In the province of A Coruña, la Menina recognizes the work of José Ángel Vázquez, current director of the Prison Center of Teixeiro. This official coordinates a group of professionals who promote various activities at the center to promote the eradication of violence against women in any of its forms. In this province, the jury also awarded three honorable mentions: the staff of the Family and Women’s Care Unit (UFAM) of the Local Judicial Police Brigade of the Ferrol-Narón Police Station, for their dedication, especially, to cases related to sexual freedom; and the head of the Local Police of Muxía, José Manuel Blanco, for his involvement in the protection of victims of gender violence of this City Council through the Viogen System. The third mention comes from Ana Belén Puñal, PhD in Communication Sciences and an expert in communication from a gender perspective. This mention was promoted from the Colexio de Xornalista de Galicia highlighting the role of communication professionals in the promotion of gender equality.
In the province of Lugo, the Menina is awarded to the project ‘Mulleres de Lugo’, promoted by the educational community of the IES ‘Anxel Fole’ and ‘Nosa Señora dos Ollos Grandes’ of the city of Lugo. Both centers promoted a research work that was translated into a school calendar to make visible, in the educational centers of the environment, the role of Lucan women in fields such as activism, science, literature, performing arts or politics. In this province, the honorable mention is given to the national police Cristina Castro, assigned to the Family and Women's Care Unit (UFAM) of the Lugo Police Station.
In Ourense, the Menina recognition is for valoReSC NGOs, which has its main headquarters in the city of Ourense. According to the ruling, the professional work of the people who form this entity promoted positive initiatives in the field of equality and for their work with women victims of violence is recognized. The honorable mention is given to the civil guard Vanesa Domínguez, of the Civil Guard Command of Ourense.
In Pontevedra, Menina Silvia Pérez, a doctor in Sociology and professor at the University of Vigo, receives recognition. In 2018, she won the first state prize for doctoral dissertations on gender violence, awarded by the Ministry of Equality. In this province, the jury awards two honorable mentions. The first for the VIOGEN Team of the 1st Tui Civil Guard Company. The mention distinguishes the work and personal commitment of the six men and women who make up this unit, which annually instructs an average of 300 attestations related to gender violence. The second mention goes to the Office of Attention to Victims of Crime in the courts of Vigo. In this case it was the users of this office themselves who promoted this candidacy showing their gratitude for the treatment, support and dedication of the people who work in this unit.
The jury was chaired by the Government delegate, Pedro Blanco, and analyzed the proposals of the Coordination Unit against Violence against Women of the Government Delegation and the Violence against Women Units of the four Government subdelegations in the Galician provinces.
25N programming
The presentation of the Meninas Awards will take place on the afternoon of next Tuesday, November 21, at the Hostal dos Reis Católica, in the week of 25N. This event is part of the programme designed by the Government Delegation and the four sub-delegations around the International Day against Gender Violence.
During these weeks, activities were held in the four provinces to address, from different perspectives, the prevention of gender violence, the care of victims of this scourge and the training of people who attend to this phenomenon. Among them, in Vigo a perfo-poetic recital was held that gave voice to the Galician writers for equality and against machismo and the Subdelegation promoted the experience “Regueifando en igualdade”, which reached more than 250 secondary students of three educational centers in the province of Pontevedra; Lugo hosted the annual day of formation of Bodies and Security Forces; and in A Coruña remains open, in the ships of the Metrosidero, the exhibition “Amigo Te da Nota”, to sensitize young people against machista behaviors in adolescents. In Ourense, the Subdelegation in this province organizes a self-defense course for women employees of the General Administration of the State, which will take place on November 23 and 28.
The program will culminate, on November 24, Friday, with the reading in front of the Government Delegation, in A Coruña, of the institutional statements against male violence. It will be a public act and open to citizens in which a minute of silence will be kept in memory of all the women who were killed or suffer this type of violence.