In Navarra, more specifically in the town of Estella, they have created this project that will be extended to other points in Spain through which the Camino de Santiago passes. We believe that it is a very interesting project for the women who walk the path and we hope that It will soon spread to other locations.
The Estella-Lizarra City Council, from its Equality Area, will inaugurate next Sunday, September 13, its pioneering good practices project 'Camino de Santiago friendly, safe and free for women', a proposal that seeks above all that the Jacobean Route be a safe and egalitarian environment for women, who already surpass men in terms of the number of pilgrims. The inauguration was scheduled for March, but had to be postponed as a result of Covid-19. Since then, work has continued, both locally and outside of Navarra, extending the project to different points along the Camino. And, for the first time, the gender perspective is introduced on the Jacobean Route.
One of the activities that has been worked on, and which took place on August 26, was the training of hospital staff from the different shelters in the city given by Kris Montero Sistiaga. Staff from the Municipal Shelter, the Anfas Shelter, the Oncineda Shelter, the Curtidores Hostel and the Capuchinos Shelter attended, with Estrella La Madrid also attending on behalf of the Government Delegation, which finances the project through the State Pact.
During the session, the Action Protocol 'For a friendly, safe and free Camino de Santiago for women' was presented and explained. What do I do if I witness a sexist assault?' The objective of this project is nothing more than "respecting the right of women to travel along the Camino as safely as possible, as well as being clear about the resources and how to act in the different possible scenarios of sexist attacks." To thank you for your involvement, on the 13th you will be given a diploma and a device to put in the shelter. Training is also being carried out from Estella in hostels in other places, such as León, Logroño, Burgos, Palencia, etc.
That day will also be especially remembered for the American pilgrim Denise Pikka Thiem, murdered on the Camino in April 2015. Authorities and representatives of different entities and associations are expected to attend. “We are going to start from Estella-Lizarra, undoing the tape that has maintained the structural knots of inequality also on the Camino de Santiago, with our mayor at the helm,” they explain from the Equality Area.
