Tim za socijalno uključivanje i smanjenje siromaštva

The Commissioner for the Protection of Equality Brankica Janković and the employees of the institution signed on 2 November an initiative to declare 18 May Memorial Day for Murdered Women Victims of Violence. Noting violence as one of the key social problems, she said it is necessary to prevent the killing of women due to omissions in system institutions. A woman is murdered every week in Serbia, while during the past ten years 326 women have been killed in cases of family or partner violence.

Following the signing of the petition, Janković told the press that this memorial day is necessary so that women killed by their partners or family members become more than just a statistic. The Commissioner lauded the announced measures of the Government of Serbia in the field of protection from family violence, particularly noting the importance of the new law that should contribute to establishing the responsibility of professionals in system institutions.

The President of the Coordination Body for Gender Equality of the Government of the Republic of Serbia Zorana Mihajlović signed the petition to declare 18 May Memorial Day for Murdered Women Victims of Violence.

“Even when a single woman is killed, it is a problem. Every other woman in Serbia is suffering some form of violence, and therefore I call on everyone to sign the petition, because it represents one way to send the message that violence against women must stop”, said the Deputy Prime Minister. She assessed that greater coordination is required between system institutions in this field, since the progress achieved during the past two years is insufficient.

Source: Beta, taken from www.euractiv.rs