GCRT's work with Survivors of War

As a result of military conflict in Georgia tens of thousand remain internally displaced apart from this many returnees face severe traumatization. GCRT’s efforts are aimed at providing effective psychological, medical social and legal assistance to those affected. GCRT works in 12 community centers in Tbilisi, Rustavi and Kutaisi (around 1300 IDPs) and in Gori refugee camp (around 1800 IDPs). In many of these communities “initiative groups”, consisting from active and informal leaders of the community were formed and are running.

While working in the abovementioned communities GCRT provides crisis intervention on various levels: psychological first aid, medical first aid, resource activation; stabilization group work with children and adolescents; community mobilization activities are in process and imply psycho-education, running of self-help and mutual help groups, information gathering and sharing. GCRT is also conducting individual work with vulnerable groups – persons especially traumatized as a result of war actions: hostages, victims of inhuman treatment and torture; elderly and children.

Derived from the crisis situation GCRT elaborated a one day training program on crisis intervention and psychological first aid and is conducting trainings on permanent basis for professionals and para-professionals. GCRT has trained employees of ministry of education, master degree students of department of psychology of Tbilisi State University, local ngo-s specializing in psychological issues, IDP community leaders, IDP NGO representatives, psychologists of World Vision Georgia. In sum 160 persons underwent crisis intervention trainings. Trained professionals and organizations are in contact with GCRT on permanent basis for the purposes of supervision and exchange of information, and serve as referral organizations. In the nearest future second stage of trainings for these stakeholders is planned.

GCRT’s lawyers documented cases of grave human rights violations and directed them to the governmental and nongovernmental organizations dealing with international proceedings in European Court of Human Rights and International Court of Justice.