NANE segélyvonal / NANE Helpline

About the NANE helpline The helpline’s target group includes the victims of gender-based violence and the connected issues of child abuse, sexual violence, and incest. We also welcome calls by those close to the victims, people who want to help, as well as trained professionals. For the most part, the fundamental values of the helpline are the same as The Association’s General Principles.

The NANE helpline, operating since February 1994, is called almost 1,200 times every year with abuse-related issues. The costs of the calls are covered by the NANE Association with help from tenders to maintain the helpline, as well as other resources (e.g. donations) so that it does not cost anything for the callers. The volunteers of the Association deal with every form of violence against women, be it emotional, verbal, physical, sexual, or economic abuse. The helpline offers the first step to effectively handle violence against women: a supportive conversation that helps the caller become conscious of the issue and provides them with information. The aim of these conversations is to map out what the caller wants and what their resources are, as well as to bust the misconceptions and myths around the issue of gender-based violence, often shared by victims as well. The helpline can be called anonymously, as battered women are often stigmatized both by their immediate environment and wider society, which causes a sense of shame that may prevent them from seeking help.

The trained volunteers of the NANE helpline are aware of the social backgrounds of violence, do not blame the victims, and believe the callers. We know that violence (be it emotional, verbal, physical, sexual, or economic) is still violence, even if the perpetrator is unknown or if the attack takes place in a public space. We know that perpetrators can be rich and influential as well and that violence does not occur exclusively under coercion or death threats. In the cases of sexual violence and harassment, we believe that the influence of alcohol or drug use does not mean consent, and neither does the fact that the victim accepted a drink or went to the perpetrator’s home.

Only the perpetrator is responsible for the violence, never the victim.