The Interfaith Group on Domestic Violence recently hosted a lunchtime event in the Robert Burns Room of the Scottish Parliament, to which all MSPs and Faith Leaders were invited. George Adam, MSP, sponsored this event, and we are grateful to him for making it possible for us to raise the issue of abuse to a wider audience. After beginning with a prayer, the history of our group and the work we have been involved in over the years was outlined as well as some exciting new developments in schools, the prison service and hopefully, production of an educational DVD, should funding become available.
To increase understanding of the complicated issues facing someone fleeing from abuse, an interactive exercise was used and to deal with some of the common misunderstandings of the process of abuse and how it develops, everyone took part in a quiz, which helped to dispel some of the myths relating to the effects on families and individuals.
After a question and answer session we finished with a prayer and a few words about our basis in faith. Networking time followed and this is when useful connections were made for future events and new fields of work.
Many thanks to the Scottish Parliament for allowing this event to take place.
See below a photo of members of the group alongside MSPs: