Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1440477
3 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 5 JANUARY 2022 NEWS LAURA CALLEJA FEMICIDE should be made a criminal offence or an aggravat- ing offence of homicide, a new report on femicide in Malta re- leased today is recommending. The country report compiled by the University of Malta and the Women's Rights Founda- tion also recommends the use of GPS monitoring for predators out on bail and in cases where a suspended sentence has been awarded and restraining orders have been issued. The report says electronic tag- ging can reduce the risk of femi- cide. "Maltese society and culture are still heavily shaped by pa- triarchy," the report says, citing that there is a link between the way men and women are treated in society and femicide. The report was released 48 hours after Paulina Dembska was murdered at Sliema's Inde- pendence Garden early on Sun- day, 2 January. Her lifeless body was found just below the popular promenade by a passer-by just before 6:30am. Murder suspect, Abner Aquili- na, 20, has not yet been charged as he is being kept under obser- vation for a mental health assess- ment at Mount Carmel Hospital. The report adds that while Malta implemented the Istanbul Convention on gender-based vi- olence in 2018, the laws which are currently in place still do not fully protect women who expe- rience domestic violence inci- dents, and at times, the courts fail to protect women from the perpetrator. As a result, many victims opt- out of reporting or if they do, many decide to recant. "Behind this behaviour is the background noise of shame, propelling wom- en to obey and to accept the vio- lence being done to them." This situation means that many domestic violence cases go untackled and unresolved, laying the ground for possible femicides. It said that tackling violence against women must come from different directions, taking into account the country's culture and harmful attitudes, behav- iours, and stereotypes in institu- tions and in individuals and the education system. "The focus has to be on pro- viding the best multi-agency ap- proach to help victims and their families, whilst targeting the general public through aware- ness campaigns promoting gen- der equality, which will spear- head better policies," the report says. To this effect, it also recom- mends that the perpetrator should be removed from the home in cases of domestic vi- olence. "The victim should be awarded immediate and effec- tive protection whilst remaining in the home." Further expanding on this, the report says that in the cas- es where children are involved, the court should refrain from awarding joint custody or access arrangements between the per- petrator and the victim that en- dangers women's lives and puts their safety and their children's at risk. The report also recommends professionals such as police and front liners should approach all domestic violence cases from a homicide-prevention perspec- tive with a gendered lens and as well as a victim-based view to ensure the safety of victims who are abused. 'Maltese society and culture still heavily shaped by patriarchy' Hundreds attend vigil in memory of murder victim Paulina Dembska NICOLE MEILAK HUNDREDS have gathered along the Sliema promenade on Tuesday evening in memory of murder victim Paulina Demb- ska, who was killed at the same site a few days earlier. People lined flowers and lit candles along the railing at Gnien l-Independenza in Dembska's memory, after her body was found below the wall and along the ramp leading down to the garden. Dembska's family were present at the vigil through a video call and gave a word of thanks to the attendees. A message was read out from Dembska's mother and women's rights activists insist- ed that Paulina's name will not be forgot- ten. Activist Lara Dimitrijevic said Demb- ska's murder was a stark reminder that the country had to pull up its socks and pro- tect women. A woman read out some of Dembska's personal writings: "We come into this world without riches, and we leave this world without riches." The vigil was attended by scores of peo- ple, including Prime Minister Robert Ab- ela and Equality Minister Owen Bonnici. The vigil was also attended by Miriam Dalli, David Thake and Arnold Cassola, together with other members of the La- bour Party, Nationalist Party, and AD- PD. Paulina Dembska, a 29-year-old Polish student, was brutally murdered at Sliema's Independence Garden on Sunday, making her the first murder victim in Malta this year. Reports said she had signs of violence around her head and on her chest, with the autopsy showing she was raped and strangled. Murder suspect Abner Aquilina was ar- rested that same day, and is now under ob- servation for a mental health assessment at Mount Carmel hospital. No connection between Dembska, a Sliema resident who spoke highly of Malta and was often seen at the Independence Gardens feeding the cat colony, and Aqui- lina, of Żejtun, has been established. Paulina Dembska murder People lined flowers and lit candles along the railing at Gnien l-Independenza