The Government’s new Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) Strategy raises some concerns, including an oversight of the structural barriers that migrant victims and survivors face, many of which we will be examining and responding to in detail in the coming weeks.
Among the limited provisions for migrant victims and survivors included in the strategy, we welcome the Government’s recognition that safe reporting mechanisms are essential to tackling VAWG. LAWRS, through the Step Up Migrant Women Campaign, has for many years been campaigning for the introduction of a full firewall that would ensure women´s data is safe and reporting a crime would not result in a negative consequence for victims and survivors with insecure immigration status. This call has been echoed by several organisations in the VAWG sector, particularly Southall Black Sisters (SBS) with whom LAWRS has closely collaborated in negotiating with the Home Office. The firewall has also been recommended by the independent bodies that led the investigation of the first super-complaint by Liberty and SBS , Independent Commissioners, and the Government when it was in opposition.
A wealth of evidence shows that migrant women who are victims and survivors of VAWG often fear coming forward because of the risk of their immigration status being prioritised over their safety. For many, immigration status is deliberately weaponised by abusers, who exploit the hostile environment towards migrants to maintain control and silence survivors. Acknowledging that fear of immigration enforcement prevents survivors from reporting abuse is an important and long-overdue step.
The Government’s proposal does not constitute a full firewall. However, LAWRS and SBS’ negotiations with the Home Office have led to the introduction of a requirement to obtain informed consent from the victim/survivor for their data to be shared. This is a significant development in mitigating the current situation where data can be shared without consent, preventing victims and survivors from reporting abuse. We call on the Government to introduce safeguards to ensure that no victim/survivor will be subjected to Immigration Enforcement action where data is shared, and instead they are referred to specialist ‘by and for’ organisations for safety and support. We will be closely monitoring how this is designed, implemented and evaluated. Real protection for migrant victims and survivors depends on robust, trusted safeguards that ensure survivors can seek help without fear. These protections must also extend to other victims of serious crime, including trafficking and exploitation.
We call on the Government to develop this new policy in collaboration with ‘by and for‘ organisations to ensure it is fit for purpose.
Today’s acknowledgement is a clear recognition of the work developed by the Step Up Migrant Women Campaign, supported by 56 organisations, whose advocacy has consistently pushed for survivor-centred, rights-based and evidence-led approaches to ending VAWG.
We thank the survivors and organisations who have been part of our campaign so far. We will not stop until all women can report abuse safely.
