It was announced on Aug. 27 that the provincial government is increasing this year’s funding to Manitoba Justice Victims Services by 50 per cent.
The additional money is being drawn from the Criminal Property Forfeiture Fund, which uses proceeds from the sale of seized criminal property to help support “a variety of important initiatives, including building community, preventing crime, investing in youth and supporting victims of crime,” states a news release.
“This year, the fund is providing … $750,000 to Manitoba Justice Victim Services, an increase from the usual $500,000,” it states.
The funding will go to a number of initiatives aimed at helping victims dealing with the fallout from things such as childhood sexual abuse, sexual violence, the murder of loved ones, intimate partner violence, sex work, violent crime and impaired driving. The funding will also go to a number of initiatives geared towards the province’s large Indigenous population.
“We need to do everything we can to support Manitobans who are victims of crime,” said Manitoba Justice Minister Matt Wiebe in a statement. “These resources will support programs running throughout the province and ensure that we can make compassionate, community-based care available to those who need it in the aftermath of a crime.”
The funding is “fundamental to the care we provide to survivors of sexualized violence,” said Coral Kendel, executive director of the Survivor’s Hope Crisis Centre, one of the groups receiving the help.
“Community-based programs like [the Sexual Assault Recovery and Healing Program] increase the options to justice available in rural Manitoba and empower survivors to heal in ways that make sense to them,” said Kendel. “We are encouraged to hear of the increase in funding provided to Manitoba Victim Services and look forward to our continued relationship together with the shared goal of supporting Manitobans impacted by violence.”
Last summer, the province announced it would draw $100,000 from the forfeiture fund to provide high-speed Internet for eight First Nations communities — and one youth centre — in the province’s remote north.
Around that same time, it drew from the fund to give Winnipeg Police more than $1 million for various initiatives, including enhanced video technology and “trauma-informed training” for as many as 200 officers.
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