On the Issues Episode 175: Feride Rushiti
Today’s guest is Dr. Feride Rushiti, founder and Executive Director of the Kosovo Rehabilitation Center for Torture Victims. Dr. Rushiti, a medical doctor, began treating civilian victims of war during the Kosovo war in 1999. She was among the first doctors to recognize the need for treatment of psychological trauma for refugees fleeing the violence, particularly for women and minority groups. Dr. Rushiti also played a key role in developing Kosovo’s legal framework for the humane treatment of prisoners and other detainees, successfully advocating for independent monitoring of detention facilities. In March 2018, Dr. Rushiti received the U.S. Secretary of State’s International Women of Courage Award in recognition of her work with survivors of torture and human rights advocacy.
In this episode, Alon and Dr. Rushiti discuss her work with survivors of sexual violence during wartime and what led her into this work, efforts to have survivors of sexual violence recognized as war victims in Kosovo and to dismantle stigmas against survivors, the impact of intergenerational trauma, and encouraging survivors to seek support.
Full bio
Dr. Feride Rushiti is the founder and Executive Director of the Kosovo Rehabilitation Center for Torture Victims (KRCT). Through almost two decades of research and advocacy, Dr. Rushiti has secured access to healthcare and justice for civilian victims of Kosovo’s 1998-1999 war. Her advocacy led to the recognition of the survivors of wartime sexual violence among other civilian victims of war in 2014 as well as the landmark decision in 2017 by the Cossack government to fund pensions for Kosovo’s victims of wartime sexual violence.
Dr. Rushiti, a medical doctor, began treating civilian victims of war during the active conflict in 1999. She was among the first doctors to recognize the need for treatment of psychological trauma for refugees fleeing the violence, particularly for women and minority groups. She pioneered a multi-disciplinary approach to addressing the needs of conflict victims, with an aspiration to build a single organization to provide psycho-social support, legal assistance, medication, treatment, and policy advocacy.
Dr. Rushiti also played a key role in developing Kosovo’s legal framework for the humane treatment of prisoners and other detainees, advocating successfully for the independent monitoring of detention facilities. In March 2018, Dr. Rushiti received the U.S. Secretary of State’s International Women of Courage Award in recognition of her work with survivors of torture and human rights advocacy. Throughout her career, she has received numerous other prizes in recognition of her human rights work with survivors of wartime sexual violence as well as other marginalized groups.