September 22 was chosen to mark an incident that occurred during a divorce action at Zagreb Municipal Court five years ago when Mato Oraskic shot dead his wife Gordana, her lawyer Hajra Prohic, judge Ljiljana Hvalec, and seriously wounded recording clerk Stanka Cvetkovic.
Deputy Prime Minister and Family Affairs Minister Jadranka Kosor warned of a growing number of victims of domestic violence, saying that 353 persons were reported for domestic violence in 1999; 3,410 were reported in 2000; 5,004 in 2001; 6,600 in 2002; and 9,151 in 2003.
At the same time, 624 victims of violence were reported in 1999; 5,325 in 2000; 7,159 in 2001; 9,182 in 2002; and 12,260 in 2003, of whom 67 per cent were women, Kosor said.
Kosor warned that 2,340 persons responsible for domestic violence and 3,426 victims of violence were reported in the first three months of this year, which was 88 per cent more than in the same period in 2003.