National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia / Activities / Activity details
Thursday, 13 July 2017
Human and Minority Rights and Gender Equality Committee Chairman Speaks Out on Domestic Violence in Social Work Centres
The last two fatal cases that happened in social work centres are the consequence of long-standing domestic violence. In both cases the perpetrators already had police records and were convicted of different crimes. Still, their intention and plan to perpetrate violence had not been recognized and prevented on time.
Even though were have as a state done a lot lately to set up an adequate legal framework by passing the Law on Preventing Domestic Violence and amending the Criminal Code, that is obviously not enough. The state must set up more efficient mechanisms to stand up to the perpetrators of violence. First and foremost, we have to begin to enforce the adopted legislation without delay. All services have to work closer together, starting from specific cases, and review the daily state-of-play. The recent events have shown that severe punishments are not enough of a deterrent, relevant institutions must do all in their power to recognize domestic violence on time and prevent it. Prevention is key, and the first hint of domestic violence must be an alarm both for the women exposed to it and the institutions.
The perpetrators of domestic violence must be prevented from realizing their intentions. Social work centres are clearly not equipped to respond to these demands. It is also clear that this is not only their job, and that they must be given support as regards human resources, better security and training for the experts who work there.
Unfortunately, the recent tragic events which have in fact been happening for years reflect our reality and impaired domestic relations. That is why domestic violence is a social problem that requires urgent measures and responsible handling by the institutions.