European Commission organises Ceremony 18th European Remembrance Day for Victims of Terrorism
On Friday 11th March 2022, the European Commission will organise an event to mark the 18th European Remembrance Day for Victims of Terrorism. This day is devoted to commemorate all EU victims of terrorism worldwide and victims on EU soil. The event brings together victims and survivors of terrorism, victims’ associations and first responders to share their stories and experiences, as well as European and Member States’ representatives to present EU and civil society initiatives and the European Centre of expertise for victims of terrorism. The European Commission together with the Victims/Survivors of Terrorism (VoT) Working Group of the Radicalisation Awareness Network (RAN) would like to invite you to digitally attend the ceremony, which will take place on 11 March 2022, 09:15 – 12:30 CET.
This year, the theme of the event will be “Voices of Hope – Generations United in Remembrance”; the event will provide an opportunity for participants to share their thoughts, experiences and perspectives on how to promote remembrance across generations.
The event will take place on the premises of the European Commission in Brussels. Similar to 2021, the event will take place in a hybrid format, as physical participation in Brussels will be limited due to the situation related to COVID-19. This save the date regards your digital attendance via videoconference.
Furthermore, on Thursday 10 March, an online meeting will take place in order to provide all participants with the opportunity to meet informally before the ceremony on 11 March.
Please note that during the ceremony, interpretation in FR-DE-EN-IT-ES-NL-PT-EL-DA-SV-PL will be provided. If you have any questions about the European Remembrance Day, please contact the RAN VoT Working Group at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Solidarity with the people of Ukraine
APAV expresses its most profound solidarity with all victims of the war in Ukraine.
It is with great sorrow that we follow the severe violation of human and fundamental rights of Ukrainian citizens, essencial pillars of life in society and in a global community. Such gross violations, now assuming the form an armed conflict, produce extremely negative and long-lasting impacts in all direct and indirect victims.
The disruptions caused to the most elementary feeling of safety, well-being and personal freedom may last for a long period of time and for many years to come, generating deep consequences in all life’s spheres, profound suffering and serious difficulties at the physical, psychological and social levels.
We express all our support to all victims of this unspeakable war, highlighting our most profound solidarity with the Ukrainian community in Portugal and with all their families and friends, now united by grief and by piece in their home country.
Infovictims III project partners meeting
On the 15th and the 16th of November 2021, the Infovictims III project partners met in Athens to discuss the progress made in the project activities and plan the upcoming tasks for the second year of implementation.
Through Infovictims III, partner organisations in 9 different EU countries are developing information tools for victims of crime that are easy to read, while being comprehensive in the essential aspects any person needs to know when falling victim to crime, such as the rights made available to victims and the ways to exercise them. The information tools include a website, a mobile app and a brochure, which will be launched in 2022.
On the second day of the 2-day work meeting, partners had the honour to meet with Representatives of the Greek Government to introduce them the Infovictims III project, learn about the policies and actions implemented in Greece in the field of victims’ rights, and engage in a fruitful discussion about the challenges and best practices in information provision to crime victims. Specifically, the project team met and discussed with Mr. Thanos Panagiotou, Director of the Office of the Deputy Minister of Justice, Lieut. Maria Sophia Kiriakou, Head of the Department of Domestic Violence of the Hellenic Police, and Ms. Chryssa Papaiakovou, Legal Adviser to the Office of the Deputy Minister of Labour and Social Affairs.
The event was co-organised by the European Public Law Organisation (EPLO) and the Portuguese Association for Victim Support (APAV), counting as well with the participation of the Vilnius Institute for Advanced Studies, the Irish Council of Civil Liberties, France Victimes, Association Onlus Libra, Weisser Ring Germany, Bily Kruh Bezpeci, Subvenia Victima and Victim Support Europe.
The Infovictims III project is funded by the European Commission Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers.
APAV hosted VSE International Staff Exchange
During the week of November 8 to 12, a visit to Lisbon was promoted by Victim Support Europe and organized by APAV. From Estonia, we received four representatives of the Estonian Social Insurance Board; and from Croatia, one representative of the Victim and Witness Support Service and another of Service for Victim and Witness Support of Justice and Public Administration ministry.
During these days, we spoked about communication and shared some ideas on how to spread relevant information to the victims. There was also a chance to get to know the work developed in Alcipe’s Shelter Home and also to visit the facilities of the Integrated Distance Support Services. It was debated awareness campaigns, fundraisings and how to manage the relation with the media; the ceremony of APAV’s Journalism Award 2021 was also a part of the schedule.
These international exchange moments are fundamental to the process of sharing ideas on how the different countries are responding to the challenges, that are mostly common. Due to this information exchange we can evolve and learn new approaches that may always come in handy.
Presentation | Project WithYou: accompaniment of victims and witnesses in the justice system
The Portuguese Association for Victim Support, with the support of Attorney General's Office, promoted on the 4th November the presentation session of the Project With You: accompaniment of victims and witnesses in the justice system, in Lisbon.
The session was attended by a diversified panel and promoted the debate and reflection upon the perks of victims and witnesses accompanying by a specialized skilled technician, in the multiple procedural steps during their participation in the justice system.
The event was originated from an extensive research developed in the scope of Project With You: accompaniment of victims and witnesses in the justice system, with the purpose of contributing for the decrease in secondary victimization and/or repeated, that results from the participation of crime victims and witnesses during criminal proceedings. The project, developed in partnership with Attorney General's Office, National Republican Guard, eneral Directorate of the Administration of Justice, France Victims, Social Reintegration Institute of Euskadi (Netherlands), Victim and Witness Support Service Croatia and Viesoji Istaiga Vilniaus Pazangiu Studiju Institutas (Vilnius Advanced Studies Institute, Lithuania), with the funding of European Union’s Justice Program.