What creates a sense of safety when we begin a new life in a new country? Sometimes it is very concrete: I know where my document is. I know what to do with an official letter. I know how to send an important letter. I know when to call 112. I know that I do not have to give anyone a photo of my identity document. I know where to look for help.
These were exactly the kinds of everyday situations we discussed during the legal and social workshop held as part of the project “On the Path to Safety”. We began with the question: “What is the most difficult part of everyday life in Poland for you?” We did not start with a ready-made list of problems, but with the experiences and needs of the participants themselves. Their voices shaped the direction of the meeting.
We talked about identity documents and personal data security, what is worth knowing before signing a document, how to respond to official correspondence, how nurseries operate, why it is important to pay fines, and when to use the emergency number 112.
The workshop was also very practical:
– we learned how to address envelopes,
– we discussed proof of postage,
– we covered the basic issues involved in opening a bank account.
There were many questions. And that was a very good thing. Asking a question is not a sign of ignorance. It is a way of regaining orientation and influence over one’s own life. In a trauma-informed approach, it is particularly important to create conditions in which a person can feel safe, have a choice, ask questions without fear of judgement, and gradually build a sense of agency. That is why our goal was not for the participants to “know all the rules”.
It was about something more important:
– for them to know that they can ask questions.
– that they can look for information.
– that they have the right not to know something.
– that they can ask for and use support.
– and that, over time, they can move through their new reality with growing confidence.
We also compared Polish solutions with the way similar matters are handled in the participants’ countries of origin. This made the meeting a space for exchanging experiences rather than a one-way transfer of knowledge. Each participant received materials prepared by us in her own language, which she can keep and use whenever she needs them. Because safety is not only the absence of danger.
The project “On the Path to Safety – Support for Women with Experience of Forced Migration and Violence” is implemented as part of SPLOT Wartości 2.0, co-funded by the European Union’s Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) Programme.
