Interview with Lene Johannesson - LOKK Secretary

LOKK: Danish National Organization of Women s Crisis Center
http://www.lokk.dk/


CWE: How Does LOKK define violence against women?

LOKK : LOKK refers to UN’s definition of violence against women:

“Any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or mental harm or suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life.”

CWE :Can you tell us a little about LOOK’s background and history?


LOKK : Denmark’s about 40 shelters enable battered women across the country to seek protection, support and counselling if they and their children are subjected to abuse.

The shelters were established in the 1970s and early 1980s, mainly as a result of the women’s movement. Most shelters were founded by volunteers. These women wanted to help other women, who lived in violent relationships. Voluntary work and dedication still play a major role in many shelters. The shelters are currently either municipal or independent institutions.

The shelters founded LOKK as a membership organisation in 1987.

CWE: How is LOKK as an organization built?

LOKK : The general assembly is the highest authority. Each shelter has one vote. The general assembly selects the chairman and the members of the committee and related working groups. LOKK has a main office with 10 staff members.

CWE: What is LOKK’s purpose and visions?. The foundation in your work?

LOKK : The mission is on a feminist basis to support the shelters in their effort to prevent, combat and create awareness of physical and psychological violence against women and their children. In order to fulfil this mission, LOKK has the following objectives:

• To communicate knowledge, information and experiences on the subject area to the shelters
• To set up working groups in relevant areas
• To strengthen the co-operation between the shelters
• To co-operate with shelters in the other Nordic and European countries
• To negotiate with public authorities about the conditions for shelters

CWE: How does LOKK work to fulfil this?

LOKK : LOKK has a general office in Copenhagen with ten staff members. The general office is supporting the LOKK committee, negotiating with national authorities, arranging conferences, seminars and in-service courses and is advising ministries, police forces, other authorities, organisations, professionals and victims about security, legislation and honour related violence. Through the shelters, LOKK is collecting data for an annual statistical report contributing to the creation of knowledge about the dimensions of domestic violence in Denmark.

LOKK is co-operating with other organisations and unions, preventing, combating and creating awareness of physical and psychological violence against women and their children. LOKK has also a wide network of partner organisations and contacts.


CWE: It will be interesting for our readers in the Middle East to hear a little about the situation of battered women in Denmark. Can you tell us a little about that?

LOKK : The general opinion in Denmark is that domestic violence is unacceptable. It has taken many years to establish this as the general attitude.

The first step was taken by the Women’s Movement in the 70’ties. The second step was the following establishment of shelters for battered women during the 80’ties.

A third step was taken, when the government in 2001 implemented a national plan of action. As part of this plan a large national information campaign was carried out.

Despite the fact, that we have had shelters, public funding and information campaign for many years, the problem is fare from eliminated. From national health surveys we know, that 28.000 Danish women are exposed to domestic violence every year. Denmark has a population of 5.5 million people.

During the last 10 years LOKK has realised, that many women among the ethnic minorities are suffering from honour related crimes, forced marriages and other types of generational conflicts. These women can seek help and support at the shelters. LOKK has also established a counselling team specialized in solving these kinds of conflicts.

When a victim of domestic violence is showing up at a shelter, the local social service department, a hospital or, she will normally be recommended to report the perpetrator to the police. At the police station it will be taken serious, and the police will start an investigation.

CWE: Can you draw a “typical” picture of battered woman in Denmark or is it women from all kind of social classes and backgrounds.

LOKK : We often see the same pattern. It starts with psychological violence, where the perpetrator is humiliating his wife or girlfriend and isolating her from family and friends. When he stats beating her, she might thing, that it is her own fault, as it has come to a state, where her self-confidence has been destroyed. The extent and roughness of the violence will increase and it can go on for years.

Violence against women takes place in all kinds of societies and social classes. But it has a social impact. Amongst the 2.000 women, who every year stays at one of our shelters, we meet other social problems. A vast majority of these women are low educated and stays outside the labour market. This makes them very depended on their husbands. Their social situation makes it even more difficult to break out of the violence.

CWE: How are the condition and circumstances of battered women?

LOKK : Mentally it can be difficult to realise what is going on and to break the silence about it.

At the shelters battered women can get security, help and support. But some women don’t want to go to a shelter, as it will make them feel stigmatised. They might instead seek help from family, friends, lawyers, doctors or psychologists.

Compared with many other countries it is relatively easier for Danish women to break out of violence. Most of them have an education and a job, which makes them economically independent. If they have no income they can claim social welfare.

In Denmark it is relatively easy and accepted to get devoice. For many women however, it can be insurmountable and financial difficult.

CWE : Their opportunities for a life after violence?


LOKK : Depending on the women’s general social situation, she will have a good chance to break out of violence. But it will also depend on; to what degree she receives help and support from her surroundings and from professionals. And to what degree she is prepared to be in power of her own life. This might imply new responsibilities and emotional crises.

CWE: How does LOKK provide support and help?

LOKK is supporting the shelters in their effort to prevent, combat and create awareness of physical and psychological violence against women and their children.

This is described in more details in the answer to question number 5.
CWE: What kind of help can a woman get in one of Look’s shelters?

LOKK : The shelter is first and foremost a safe place to stay for the battered woman and her children. While she stays at the shelter, she will get care and counselling from the social workers specialised in supporting victims of domestic violence.

Her children will get special care and support from a social worker specialised in taking care of children for violent families. The shelter will also be able to help her to report the perpetrator to the police, to get an overview of her social situation, to find an apartment etc.

Women suffering from domestic violence, who do not want or need to stay at a shelter, can always seek counselling at the nearest shelter or call LOKK’s hotline.

CWE: Does LOKK make some action in response to battered women’s children? Or families as a whole?

LOKK : As mentioned above, each shelter has a social worker specialized in taking care of the children staying at the shelter.

Last year LOKK published a book, where the methods used in the work with the children is described with many examples.

CWE: Does LOKK encourage the abused women to leave their violent husband or to stay in the relationship? Which will decide one or the other?

LOKK : At the shelter battered women are empowered to break with violence.

Traditionally women have been encouraged to leave their violent husbands. In many cases this is the most advisable solution for both her and her children.

But leaving the perpetrator doesn’t necessarily mean breaking with violence. Some women experience that the perpetrator keeps following them. In these cases she can get an alarm, and the perpetrator can get a protective order.


CWE: Does the DK state take some action to treat the violent man?

LOKK : During the last ten years there has been more focus on treatment of violent men. In some cases the women is also involved in the treatment aiming at keeping the family together

It is crucial, that the client has acknowledged, that he has a problem, and he has to be motivated for the treatment.

CWE: LOKK has a hotline for battered women, what encouraged LOKK to start it? How does the LOKK drive the hotline?

LOKK : LOKKs hotline was established with funding from the national plan of. The purpose is to give victims of domestic violence and their nearest relations a possibility to get professional counselling whenever need.

The hotline is answered by experienced social workers working at the shelter. Five shelters have been involved in the hotline project. Today two shelters are running the hotline with funding from the government.

As a supplement to the hotline, lokk are introducing a web based counselling base on anonym emails.

CWE: What kind of help can an abused woman get through the hotline?

LOKK : Calling a hotline often is a first step of action. The woman will get help to acknowledge her situation, and she will be encouraged to take action. She will also get information about the normal pattern of a violent relationship, where the violence tends to get more serious over time harming not only herself, but also her children. Depending on the situation, she will be advised to seek protection for her self and her children and to consider what steps of action she needs to take in order to get a life without violence. She will also be advised to consider reporting the perpetrator to the police.

CWE: LOKK have a counselling service for young ethnic minorities, why did LOKK get involved in this field?

During the 70’ties and 80’ties Denmark got many migrant workers from Turkey, Pakistan and the Middle East countries. During the 90’ties we became aware, that the second generation of these immigrants has to navigate between to sets of norms and culture. At home they are expected to follow the norms and traditions, their parents brought with them from their country of origin. Among their friends at school they meet the Danish norms and traditions. As their parents naturally fear to loose the norms and tradition they are raised to respect and believe in, they tend to keep a high degree of control over their teenagers. These young people on the other hand, can find it very hard exclusively to follow the norms of their parents, as they are getting integrated with the Danish way of living. As a consequence many young second generation emigrants are getting problems.

CWE :What questions and issues are the young typically seeking advice for?

LOKK : These young people are seeking counselling if they are:
• Living a double life
• Denying interring into a forced marriage
• Fearing to be send on a re-education journey to the country of origin
• Victims of honour related crimes
• Having a boy/girlfriend, which their parents will not accept

CWE : Does young people with Arabic background contact the counselling service? If yes, what types of problem do they most frequently seek councelling for?

LOKK : The main part of the young people seeking counselling has an Islamic background. But we also meet young people with other backgrounds. Their types of problems are mentioned above.


CWE : Which kind of help can LOKK offer the young people?

LOKK : LOKK can help the young person to understand why they are having generational conflicts, to clarify the level of treats and to make a plan of action in order to solve the problem.

In most cases other professionals are involved. It can be a schoolteacher, a social worker from the local social service department or the police. Depending on the level of conflict the young person can be provided a stay at a shelter. In some cases it is enough to give some advices. In other cases LOKK are providing mediation, where the parents are advised to sign a paper, promising not to harm their children.

In some cases the conflicts are so serious, that the young person decides to have no contact with their families. This is a very hard decision to make, and these young people are normally suffering a lot from not being able to see their parents and sisters and brothers. But on the other hand they are not capable of living a life as victims of honour related constraint.

CWE : Does LOOK have any experience and cooperation internationally?

LOKK : LOKK is an active player at the international level. As participant in Nordic Women against Violence, LOKK has a close contact to related organisations in the other Nordic countries. LOKK is also participating in WAVE (Women Against Violence Europe) a co-operation of European NGO’s combating domestic violence.

The LOKK committee is aware, that domestic violence is a global phenomenon, and that we have to act on an international level in order to fight it. LOKK has 30 years experiences from running shelter, and this experience can be useful in other countries.

LOKK has been making development projects and exchanged experiences with Vietnam, Russia and the Middle East countries.
CWE : Can LOKK contribute with its experience and knowledge in the Middle East?

LOKK :As mentioned, LOKK has 30 years experiences from running shelters. We also have experiences from organising the fight against domestic violence. These experiences can be useful for the organisation in the Middle East countries fighting for women’s right.

But I am also convinced, that these organisations in the Middle East can contribute to vary the concepts and methods we are using in Denmark.
CWE: Does LOKK have knowledge of projects and actions for the battered women the Middle East? Can LOKK benefit from the experience of the countries in the region?

LOKK : During the last years LOKK has had the honour of visits from different women’s organisations in the Middle East countries. The Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs has allocated funding to further cooperation between Denmark and the Middle East countries.

In LOKK we are convinced that both our organisation and the women’s movement in the Middle East can profit from a closer cooperation getting inspired by each other’s work, methods and concepts.


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