Several hundred protesters rallied in King Tomislav Square, carrying banners with messages against domestic violence - "Love doesn't hurt", "Violence is not a family matter", "Let's not give in", "We are all responsible", "A crime, not a misdemeanor", "Zero tolerance", "I'm a victim of domestic violence too", "The victim is never to blame", "Brave people" and "Actions speaker louder than words".
Protesters said domestic violence was on the rise, with 145 such crimes reported in 2015, 330 in 2016, of which 279 against women, and 552 in 2017, including 464 against women. They said that in 90% of the cases domestic violence was tried as a misdemeanor, including 16,000 such cases in 2015, 13,000 in 2016 and 12,000 in 2017.
Protesters said 91 women were killed in Croatia over the past five years, accounting for 47% of all murders. In 70% of the cases, the murderer was a person close to the victim and in over a half they were their partners.
The organisers of today's #SaveMe protest demand the immediate enforcement of all measures necessary to reduce violence, notably in the family, to improve the work of institutions and the legal framework, and to raise public awareness.
They called on the authorities to take a more serious approach to domestic violence, to improve regulations and to stop treating victims and perpetrators equally. They demand better cooperation between prosecutors, the police and welfare centres, as well as protecting the dignity and safety of victims during legal proceedings.
Furthermore, they demand additional training for professionals working with victims of violence and more money for associations working on the protection of victims.
Today's protest was prompted by a recent case in which a father threw his four children from a balcony on the island of Pag. Protests were also held in Dubrovnik, Sibenik and Split.