Letters to the editor - August 21, 2024

Machos who hurt women

I refer to a well-researched article on femicide that appeared in the August 14 edition of Times of Malta. I write to reinforce what was stated and elaborate further.

It is a fact that risks to women are being underestimated. As I had occasion to stress in my intervention during a Graffitti discussion held on November 30, men seldom change their course of action.

All experts interviewed in the Times of Malta article agreed that the ‘reporting procedure’ needs considerable amendment and that the police should rely more on professionals in the field than on the abused women’s opinion.

As Marceline Naudi stated, women enduring abusive relationships tend to underestimate the danger they are exposed to. This may be an unconscious desire not to admit that their choice of partner was erratic, considering it to be a public humiliation. They may also be considering the fact that the minimal protection usually afforded by the police would be insignificant in countering the rage stirred in their abuser.

Naudi opined that when this latest unfortunate victim expressed her fear in an email sent to the police three days before the tragedy, informing them that her ex-boyfriend had returned to Malta, this was her way of saying: “I am at risk.”

In similar cases, therefore, the police need to switch from the marathon runners they are to sprinters.

Nicolette Ghirxi. Photo: Facebook

In fact, the National Council of Women strongly recommends that these “cries for urgent help” are to be addressed immediately. This implies that stricter policies must be put in place for investigations to take off at once and that the police make full use of the executive power they are endowed with.

Our lawmakers too should review the criminal code to ensure adequate protection for potential victims and harsher punishment for vile men.

Lawyer Marita Pace Dimech, who experienced the Bernice Cassar tragedy unfold before her eyes, also agrees that the filing of a ‘police report’ is in itself proof that fear is real and present. She should know. This fact has been stressed over and over again by the National Council of Women.

Any form of threat is to be taken seriously.

One cannot help but agree with Karl Grech when he states that harassment should never be classified as a minor inconvenience, precisely because perpetrators who have set their minds to it are unpredictable about the manner they eventually resolve it. And resolve it they will unless stopped in time.

The public too should put in a show of solidarity. It is crucial for all family members, neighbours, friends and colleagues to intervene discreetly. We still have too much of “not my business, let them deal with it”.

As I once said to a female senior police officer, now retired, men fall in two categories: the gentlemen and the villains. The former err but then correct and redeem themselves. The latter err constantly and are beyond redemption. No other types exist. If she is reading this, she will recall it and may wish to contact me through the editor.

In conclusion, all members of our respectable police force are to bear in mind that Malta does not want machos who hurt women.

Antonio Zammit – Birkirkara