Page 66 - bne magazine September 2023

66 Opinion
bne September 2023
slogan "We will not be silent. Stop the genocide against women!". It drew thousands of people outraged by both the attack and by the court’s decision.
The organisers had a list of demands including tougher penalties for such crimes and an end to what they called "heartless" justice. They also called for changes to the law to treat an intimate partner on an equal footing with a spouse so that the victims can be protected under the Domestic Violence Protection Act.
Demonstrations across the Balkans
The protests in Bulgaria follow similar demonstrations in countries including Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Kosovo and Serbia.
The murder of another 18-year-old, Marigona Osmani, in August 2021 sparked protests in Kosovo.
Osmani was found outside a hospital in Ferizaj with multiple injuries that later claimed her life. Her husband and another man were caught on security cameras leaving her in front of the hospital; both men had extensive criminal records.
As well as shocking crime, the police's perceived failure to prevent the tragedy despite the perpetrators’ past records led to protests.
But the violence continued. Another murder, the killing
of pregnant Hamide Magashi sparked a further protest in November 2022 when demonstrators called for an end to femicides and for women’s treatment by men to be declared a national emergency. Again, the protesters criticised the lack of action by the state to prevent such crimes. Magashi, who was killed in front of the hospital where she planned to give birth, was the second woman murdered in the small country within a week.
In neighbouring Albania, protesters gathered outside the Ministry of Justice in March 2023 after a man with a history of rape, domestic violence and femicide killed three more people. Outraged protesters asked why the murderer had been released to kill again, and questioned the judges' integrity and accused them of corruption and negligence in their duty.
Human rights and civil society groups organised marches in the cities of Vlora, Shkodra and Tirana, demanding accountability from the relevant institutions for failing to protect victims of gender-based violence.
There were more protests in 19 cities across Bosnia in autumn 2022, after a woman was strangled in the city of Bihac. Their demands included introducing a legal definition of femicide as a criminal offence, implementing the Istanbul Convention to combat violence against women and harsher and more consistent sentences for perpetrators.
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Also in autumn 2022, protests were sparked in Serbia by
a pro-government tabloid's interview with an unrepentant serial rapist.
The protesters demanded comprehensive changes to Serbia's social and institutional systems. They called for a legal registry of rapists and abusers, removal of the offensive interview from all platforms, and an end to public funding
of unethical tabloids. Additionally, they call for media adherence to guidelines on responsible reporting of violence against women.
The protests preceded the larger demonstrations that started in May 2023 following two mass shootings within days of each other.
Just like in the earlier women’s protests, the anti-violence demonstrations of 2023 sought to call the authorities and state media to account for allowing a culture of violence to flourish in the country.
Tackling gender-based violence
Tackling gender-based violence is broadly perceived in the region as a step that needs to be taken as states advance towards EU accession, along with other reforms.
However, while there has been some progress, this has been patchy. There has, for example, been strong resistance to adoption of the Istanbul Convention on preventing violence against women.
“In recent years, Western Balkan countries have made considerable progress in adapting legislative measures against DV [domestic violence] and some other aspects
of GBV [gender based violence], changes catalysed by the initiatives and efforts of women's rights CSOs,” said women's rights organisation the Kvinna till Kvinna Foundation in
a November 2022 report.
However, it added, “Despite any level of progress or legislative amendments, DV and GBV law enforcement and implementation remains a concern ... law enforcement continues to not be victim/survivor-centred, contrary to the Istanbul Convention requirements, and no significant progress can be noticed since the last report.”
The foundation also points out that the “political instability in the Western Balkans may have negative impacts on women's participation in decision-making, and women's rights continue to be classified as a “lower priority”.” It cites a warning from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Right that “with political instability often comes the exacerbation of pre-existing patterns of gender-based discrimination.”).