Creating A Safe Space for Healing and Reconciliation

Poverty and homelessness among women and men is a global issue we all are facing, here in Taiwan and in our respective countries. Last year, the 10% rise on the number of domestic violence in Taiwan households reflects the increasing number of women and children who are seeking shelter. (The China Post, June 9, 2009). Also in 2009, violence and difficult family situation accounts for 91% of the causes of homelessness among the clients at Good Samaritan Women Center. High rate of unemployment for women who are over 40s and low skilled put them in the high risk of being homeless.

Since 2003, the women center offers a safe space for street and homeless women through its day shelter and temporary residency program for free. However, Good Samaritan Women Center works of mercy do not stop there, the organization has been in the forefront since the beginning in its advocacy for the rights of homeless people and its service provider organizations. Networking with other homeless service provider, the Samaritan Center organizes annual symposium on homelessness lobbying for the establishment of National Taiwan Homeless Services Act. The organization also advocates on the issue of women’s rights especially in the social welfare system. Three times a year the center organizes seminars on current issues affecting women.

Most days, a woman comes by herself at the center, seeking a place to live. Some women are referred to by domestic abuse center, hospital, police stations and local government social welfare service. Each day, a number of street women come asking for clothing, hot meals, warm shower, wash their laundry or just to stop by and be listened to, rest and watch television. At the Samaritan Center they have a home where they can laugh, talk, cry and tell their stories. It provides shelter for the street women from the hot sun and bitter cold winter months. Here they have home, restful and away from the streets and measuring eyes of the public.



The works of Good Samaritan Center to help individual women rebuild their lives need to expand for it to serve women more effectively. Currently, the women center rents three floors of an apartment, allowing 10-12 women to live in a given period. As more women come back to visit, the place is now very limited and there is not enough space to interact. This also limits extending temporary residency period for any women who needs more time to find work and rebuild her life.

Our hope is to buy a newly built house around the vicinity of Taichung City, where transportation is an easy access. We would like to start an eco-friendly women center which will be a model organization in Taichung City. In addition to this, we need to build our capital fund to increase our financial security to make sure that we continue delivering basic services to homeless women who come to our door. We thank you for your help.