Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1536175
maltatoday | SUNDAY • 8 JUNE 2025 4 INTERVIEW Lara Dimitrijevic: 'Judiciary should have standard procedure on how to deal with domestic violence' MEMBERS of the judiciary should have standard operating procedures on how to deal with domestic vi- olence cases, lawyer and women's rights activist Lara Dimitrijevic be- lieves. In a week which saw the news cycle dominated by two major cases—that of former Repubblika President Rob- ert Aquilina and former Labour Flo- riana councillor Justin Haber—Dim- itrijevic tells me more needs to be done to sensitise institutions to the reality of domestic violence. The two cases drew strong reac- tions over respective responses by the judiciary and the Labour Party. Speaking on the Aquilina case with- out delving into specifics, the activist voices her concern on reports Magis- trate Kevan Azzopardi did not issue an arrest warrant against the alleged aggressor. "We felt the court fell short of car- rying out its obligation to protect that victim. The court's failure to issue an arrest warrant meant the police did not have the security to continue with investigation, while ensuring the victim is protected," she says. According to reports, a risk assess- ment with the victim returned a high score, but despite this an arrest war- rant was still not issued. "Why should someone stop short of taking all the necessary measures to protect the victim and do their du- ty?" she asks. Speaking on the Haber case, Dim- itrijevic says it highlighted a kind of domestic violence which is regularly overlooked. "In cases of domestic violence be- tween couples, people will say how difficult it is to do that to someone you love. But imagine how harder it is to report and see dragged to court your sibling. I have siblings, and yes, we have fought and argued, but to get to the level of reporting your brother to the authorities is very, very diffi- cult," she tells me when asked to de- scribe how difficult it is for victims like Pearl Vella Haber [Justin Haber's sister] to come forward with their story. The lawyer also slams the Labour Party's reaction to Haber's convic- tion, saying she cannot understand what took it so long to decide wheth- er he should be removed from the party. "There is nothing to discuss; the crime has been committed," she says. I also ask Dimitrijevic about press statements issued by women's organ- isations that criticised the actions of the judiciary, contrary to past occa- sions when police behaviour was un- der scrutiny. "When we look at the authorities, we cannot look at them in a vacuum. We cannot look at only the police, but the whole system. We need to look at access to justice. It is some- thing holistic, and the law courts form part of the chain," she tells me, stating police procedure on such cas- es has improved. Lara Dimitrijevic sits down with Karl Azzopardi to discuss the authorities' handling of domestic violence in Malta, and her reaction to two cases which dominated the news cycle during the past week