The authorities must not leave domestic violence victims unprotected, and failure to take action and proper measures needs to be addressed while clearly defining accountability. This is one of the key messages from a conference entitled “How to protect the family from domestic violence”, which was organised on the occasion of Human Rights Day. We organised the conference together with our traditional partners in marking Human Rights Day – the Ombudsman’s office, NGO Civic Alliance and Council of Europe.
Ombudsman Siniša Bjeković said that a family in which women and children experience violence cannot be a sacred thing, adding that only about a fifth of domestic violence cases are recorded in a formal manner. In the first half of the year, Montenegrin misdemeanour courts heard more than 1,300 domestic violence cases.
“Children who witness domestic violence or are victims of abuse themselves are essentially in a doubly subordinate position and risk. Violence leaves psychological and sometimes physical consequences. Another important aspect is that such traumatic experiences lead children to acquire a pattern of behaviour for the future, including their future gender role, which is contrary to the core values of society,“ said the Ombudsman.
He underscored that Montenegro has an institutional basis in place for the protection against domestic violence. But when we delve into the substance of individual cases, there seem to be gaps in terms of performance.
For this reason, Vice-Speaker of the Parliament of Montenegro Branka Bošnjak emphasised that it was necessary to ensure accountability for failure to act in cases of domestic violence.
“Victims of violence are reluctant to report violence, so the system must not let them down when they decide to take such a step. The state should be more powerful than the perpetrator,“ she said.
Evgenia Giakoumopoulou, Head of the Council of Europe Programme Office in Montenegro, said that domestic violence should not be treated as a private issue or a family matter, but instead it should concern the entire society.
“For a proper institutional response, it is also necessary to apply effective sanctions. In Montenegro, it is often the case that domestic violence cases are treated as misdemeanour offences, which implies lower sanctions,” she said.
The head of the CoE Office also pointed to the need to raise public awareness of the unacceptability of such occurrences and the importance of reporting violence. In this respect, she reflected on the “Tell the whole story“ campaign, which was recently launched by the Council of Europe and the EU, calling on domestic violence victims to seek qualified legal assistance to which they are entitled regardless of their financial situation.
Riccardo Serri, Head of European Integration, Political Affairs, Media and Information Section at the EU Delegation to Montenegro, said that in Europe one in three women aged 15 or above reported having experienced some form of physical or sexual violence.
“Domestic violence had already been a ‘shadow pandemic’ before COVID-19 broke out. However, as we all know, during the pandemic, cases of domestic violence have increased dramatically, revealing the alarming reality that for many, women and girls in particular, home is not a safe place,” he said.
Serri also highlighted that the EU is helping Montenegrin society combat violence against women and domestic violence more effectively through its project activities in a number of municipalities, adding that this problem is also present in EU member states as well.
Milan Radović, Civic Alliance Programme Director, said that last year saw a 30% increase in the number of reported domestic violence incidents, adding that the number of offences and misdemeanours in this area was also on the rise.
“Appropriate institutional response is missing. Unfortunately, we had the opportunity to hear a graphic description of what happens in practice when this important problem is ignored,“ said Radović.
The conference was followed by a panel discussion entitled “How to protect the family from domestic violence, with a focus on women and children”, with Snežana Mijušković (Deputy Ombudswoman for the area of children’s rights, youth and social welfare), Jovana Radifković (Advisor at the Directorate for Social Welfare and Child protection), Snežana Vujović (Head of the Group for the Suppression of Juvenile Delinquency and Domestic Violence at the Police Directorate), Kaća Đuričković (UNDP), Maja Raičević (Center for Women’s Rights) and Rajka Perović (Centre for Children’s Rights). The panel discussion was chaired by Nerma Dobardžić, Deputy Ombudswoman for the area of protection against discrimination, minority rights and gender equality.
The conference was organised as part of a wider programme marking Human Rights Day, which featured a range of activities, including: “Human Rights in the Palm of your Hand” online game, a TV debate, Information and Documentation Centre Open Day, interactive lectures at the Faculty of Law and Faculty of Political Science of the University of Montenegro and a humanitarian football match.