Three civil organisations demand institutional accountability and legal reforms after seven femicides

Three civil organisations have urged North Macedonian institutions to declare a moratorium on ceremonial, promotional and symbolic events during the "16 Days of Activism" period, saying such gestures are unacceptable while the country records seven femicides — the most recent involving a 17-year-old girl from Bogdanci.

"We call on the Government, the Assembly, all competent institutions, the United Nations agencies, the European Commission, the OSCE, the embassies, international organisations, donors, civil organisations and the whole public to join us in this moratorium. Enough with lighting buildings in orange while our women are dying. Enough with photographing in hotels and ceremonial halls, with speeches about zero tolerance and symbolic campaigns that do not change the everyday lives of women who live in fear. We need police officers who will respond in time, social workers who have the capacity to protect, prosecutors and judges who act promptly, accessible services and institutions that will prevent the perpetrator from attacking again. We do not need a state that mourns murdered women. We need a state that will protect them while they are alive," the Network for Protection from Discrimination, the Platform for Gender Equality and the National Network against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence said in an open letter.

Key demands

• Immediate, independent and thorough investigations into institutional (non)action in all femicide cases, with identification of individual and institutional responsibility for possible failures.
• Urgent adoption of legal amendments to prevent and protect against violence, including regulation of emergency protection measures and the use of special electronic devices (tracking anklets).
• Reintroducing the concepts of gender and gender equality into education laws, violence-protection guidelines and sexual education programmes, and adopting the conclusions of the parliamentary oversight debate on gender-based violence with concrete deadlines for implementation.

The organisations also demand sufficient funding and skilled personnel for police, social work centres, prosecutors, courts and health institutions, as well as stable public financing for shelters, crisis intervention, and psychosocial and legal assistance for victims.

They addressed a special appeal to the international community, asking it to use its political weight to demand institutional accountability and to channel funds to services and mechanisms that directly help save lives. "We propose that this year's '16 Days of Activism' become 16 days of institutional accountability, during which decisions will be made, laws adopted, budgets secured and concrete obligations undertaken. Because protecting women must not be an annual campaign. It must be a daily obligation of the state," the groups said.

The demand for accountability follows public protests in Skopje after the Bogdanci femicide. At a rally a local resident said that Biljana Kirić had not attended school for weeks and that nobody had reported this to authorities.

Photo: press material from the event