Filia: 426 women and girls killed by their partners or family members in Romania in the past 8 years

The VIF network, for preventing and countering violence against women is organizing a protest movement against violence against women and girls in Bucharest on Wednesday, October 20, starting 13:00hrs.

Activists will gather in a flash mob in front of the Government in Victoriei Square, to draw attention to the fact that 33 women were killed by partners, ex-partners or family members in the first eight months of 2021 and that the state is not doing enough to to protect them.

426 women and girls have been killed by a family member in the last 8 years. In peacetime, 16 times more women and girls were killed in Romania than Romanian soldiers were killed in the war in Afghanistan during 19 years. The Romanian state has a constitutional obligation to guarantee all women and girls the right to a safe life. Every case of domestic and gender-based violence shows the state’s failure to guarantee fundamental rights, says Filia Centre in a press release.

The NGO argues that the pandemic has intensified verbal, mental, physical and sexual violence. He showed us again how central and local authorities ignore the inequalities that girls and women face, reinforcing sexism, racism, classism and transphobia.

*LF, 48, a kindergarten teacher in Bucharest, was killed by her husband in August 2021. After 6 protection orders, she was denied the extension of the last protection order in May, on the grounds that it was unfounded, although she had countless complaints to the police.

*D., aged 30, the mother of a 4-year-old boy, was killed in February, in Cisnadie, with 19 stab wounds by her ex-partner, although she had a protection order against the aggressor.

*R., aged 38, and his 15-year-old son were stabbed to death by R.’s former partner in the yard of a church in Mihăiești, Argeș. The aggressor threatened to kill R. in the show “Direct Access”, whose moderator sensationally treated the aggressions experienced by the woman. Before she was killed, R. had filed a complaint with the police for the threat.

*I., Aged 19, was killed by her ex-boyfriend with several stab wounds. The young woman had filed several complaints with the police, but was ignored by the authorities.