The helpline for women victims of violence, 3919, is now reachable 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The extension of hours started in June also concerns weekend nights since Monday, August 30.
The anonymous and free service, which was only accessible on Saturdays and Sundays from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., is now also available at night during weekends, the cabinet of Minister Elisabeth Moreno said in a statement.
This is a “kept promise” which thus comes “to concretize one of the flagship measures of the Grenelle” against domestic violence, at the end of 2019.
Open at night, 3919 is now more accessible for women living in overseas territories, despite the time difference with the metropolis. Since June, the platform has also been accessible to people who are deaf or have language difficulties.
210,000 women suffer from domestic violence each year
The extension of opening hours was formalized on May 25 when the new multi-year agreement on objectives was signed between the State and the National Federation of Solidarity Women (FNSF), which has managed this line since its creation in 1992.
To ensure the new schedules, a dozen additional listeners were “hired and trained to listen to victims of domestic violence,” said the FNSF in June.
“Women will be able to call when they choose: the first listening is essential and every moment must be seized to allow them to start the journey towards the exit of violence”, underlined the association, which received in 2020 nearly 165,000 calls, or 70% more than in 2019. It is estimated that nearly 210,000 women suffer from domestic violence each year.
In 2020, 90 women were killed by their partner or ex-partner, according to the latest official figures.