Russian refugee rebuilds her life in Catalonia after fleeing gender-based violence

Ana, a refugee who fled Russia with her two children after suffering gender-based violence, is preparing to start a new chapter in Barcelona after 18 months in a support programme in Manresa.

"I imagine myself living in Catalonia and being a happy family," she told the Catalan News Agency (ACN). Her name has been changed to protect her identity.

Ana sought asylum in Spain because she believed women had "more rights" there.

"I thought we would be safer and could get out of the vulnerable situation that my children and I were in," she said.

Initially, the move was difficult. "It's hard, mentally too. But little by little the fears [faded], and my children started making friends and learning Catalan," she said.

The family has felt welcomed in Manresa, where her children have attended school. Ana now hopes to work in Barcelona while her children continue their education.

Her experience is part of the Tomàs Canet Foundation's refugee support programme, launched in 2017. The foundation assisted 433 people in 2025 and has supported 1,425 since the programme began.

Its four residential centres, in Manresa, Castellbisbal, Sant Just Desvern and Barcelona, provide 137 places. Residents come from 36 nationalities, with Venezuela, Ukraine and Palestine accounting for 47% of those accommodated.

Programme coordinator Jennifer González said many arrivals had left behind their families, homes and professions and faced the challenge of adapting to an unfamiliar language.

The foundation provides social, legal and psychological support, as well as help finding work, with the aim of helping refugees achieve independence.

"It's not the same to support a woman on her own who has suffered gender-based violence as it is to support a family with dependent children," González said. Support is tailored to each person's circumstances and goals.