Femicide must be called by its name, and action must be taken to protect girls and women with the full force of our laws, President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca appealed on Thursday.

“We cannot allow this serious crime against women to continue within our countries. We must be bold. We must call femicide by its name and explore the root causes of this scourge within our societies,” she said at the launch of the first European Observatory on Femicide, which is based in Malta.

Gender-based violence must be monitored through an ongoing process of evaluation, to be able to effectively inform and influence policies and actions.

Above all, the President said, it was critical to nurture a transformation in the attitudes, beliefs and behaviours that condone or perpetuate violence against women.

Distinct from homicide and other forms of gender violence, femicide is a leading cause of premature death for women globally. However, although it has a high profile in the US and South America, research on this crime in Europe is sporadic and not well documented.

A group of professionals from 30 countries came together to form the first pan-European coalition on femicide. Supported by the EU-funded COST programme, the network was made up of professionals who were already studying it.

After four years of sharing good practices, researchers from Italy, Germany, Cyprus, Israel, Spain, Portugal and Malta decided to set up the first European Observatory on Femicide. It will be hosted by the University of Malta in the Department of Gender Studies and coordinated by senior lecturer Marcelline Naudi.

The observatory will analyse data, raise awareness and pass on the information to policymakers in a bid to prevent femicide.

The President said it was a pity that the EU Commission did not realise the importance of a qualified observatory, to be set up under its jurisdiction, by funding it. She was proud, however, that the University of Malta saw the need for such an entity.

Some stats

  • One in three women in the EU has been a victim of physical/sexual violence since the age of 15.
  • One in 20 women in Europe have been victims of rape.
  • 55 per cent of women have been victims of sexual harassment.
  • One in three women experienced abuse by a partner.

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