Abusers kill women in Serbia in cruelest ways, don't repent: What is the biggest problem and trigger

Violence against women in Serbia is not declining, more than 320 women have been murdered in a decade, more than 400 children have become orphans, while research shows that "murderers don't repent" - and the biggest problem is that violence goes unreported, a conference dedicated to "Preventing and Eradicating Femicide in Serbia" heard today.

"From the interviews we conducted with those convicted for murdering women, we concluded that there was no remorse and if they do feel regret, as they say, it's because they've ruined, explicitly, their own lives," said a representative of the Women's Research Center for Education and Communication, Nevena Petrusic.

State Secretary in the Ministry of Interior Biljana Popovic Ivkovic pointed to the great problem where, although victims can report abusers anonymously, in most cases they don't, nor do others from their environment.

"In 2018, we had 34 cases of murdered women, and for as many as 27 of them the police had no prior reports of domestic violence. The trend continues this year, out of 28 cases of homicide, in 17 cases there had been no previous reports of violence," said Ivkovic Popovic.

She stated that the victims are not only romantic partners, but also mothers, grandmothers and daughters, and what is most frightening are the ways in which the killings are committed.

"Perpetrators kill women in the cruelest of ways. According to our records, they use knives, physical force, hammers, bars and even hunting rifles to kill a woman, a stepmother, a grandmother, even a baby or a daughter. The perpetrator of violence, when he decides to kill, will do it," said Popovic Ivkovic.

The femicide survey by the Women's Research Center for Education and Communication and FemPlatz had been conducted for three years and analyzed final court verdicts handed down for murders of women in Serbia.

"In a certain number of cases, women had reported violence but institutions didn't respond in a timely manner. It turned out that even when the abuser had been punished earlier, he had not changed his behavior. We don't have a program for working with abusers, which would ensure that they change their behavior permanently. When it comes to court proceedings, the work of the judiciary is more efficient than that of the prosecutor's office," said Nevena Petrusic.

Abusers have different professions, university education, but they are all linked by the same pattern, Petrusic said: they are obsessively controlling of their partners and wives, and this is the model by which they can be recognized.

"Most often, the trigger for the murder is the moment when the victim wants to leave the abuser," Petrusic said.

Popovic Ivkovic said that the Interior Ministry carries out numerous activities.

"Among them is training of officers, bracelets for victims and abusers, which will be introduced over the next three years through the project, 'Improving the Safety of Women in Serbia', implemented by the United Nations Agency for Gender Equality in Serbia (UN Women), in cooperation with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, with the financial support of Norway," concluded Popovic Ivkovic, who recalled that victims of domestic violence can report their abusers anonymously and free of charge by calling 0800 100 600.

(Telegraf.rs/Tanjug)