A woman was brutally murdered in cold blood on Sunday morning. Not just murdered but also raped. While walking to the vigil alone in silence on Tuesday evening, I was trying to decipher what my feelings were about this gruesome act.

For one, I felt a strong sense of helplessness, not only for 29-year-old Paulina Dembska and her family but for us all. How have we come to this? Why this madness around us?

But the worst horror of it all is that Paulina, who, from what I read, loved Malta and was also a cat lover, was walking along the promenade alone feeling safe, given Malta has (had) the reputation of being a relatively safe country to walk around even in the early hours of the morning, and was attacked, raped and strangled to death.

The alleged attacker was a youth who claimed it was the devil who spoke to him on the night of the act. This young man has a history of previous online sexual harassment. Moreover, he was on probation for a recent minor juvenile offence. He was clearly running around because no one ever imagined he would commit such a cruel act.

Paulina was the victim. It could have been anyone. But just think for a moment: Paulina could have been any woman walking along the promenade at that time. It could have been me. I, for one, used to run every morning along the promenade at that time. Is it safe to say that we can continue to feel invulnerable when walking alone during these hours of the day? Not anymore.

Paulina did not get to see the glorious sunrise of that morning because her life was taken away from her allegedly by someone who has not yet been charged but simply held at the state mental hospital. Was he on drugs? Has he been mentally unstable a long time? Was anything done to help him get better if that were the case?

I also felt anguish. The last moments of her life must have been agonising, to say the least, what she went through, what she was made to go through before she took her last breath. She was a woman who loved life and appreciated the beauty around her. The pain her family must be going through during this time must be unbearable. Think of her mother, whose beloved daughter came to Malta to study English and who she will never see alive again.

The last moments of her life must have been agonising- Stephanie Mizzi

I will not go into the politics of this, as in the reputation of our beloved country. Whatever happened to our rock that was once considered a safe haven? Malta failed to protect her. There have been many incidents of women brutally murdered in cold blood in Malta over the past years, many cases being crimes of passion.

We had a journalist, Daphne Caruana Galizia, murdered in cold blood for disclosing corruption. And now a youth allegedly deliberately assaults and murders an innocent woman just because the devil spoke to him – this is beyond horrifying.

This murder sent shocking ripples around the country. History repeats itself, they say, and this may well happen again someday soon. With the rise in untreated drug addiction among youngsters one never knows what they would be capable of doing under the effect of these drugs.

I also felt a deep sadness as I arrived at the vigil. Yet, I felt I wasn’t alone. The attendance was overwhelming, COVID-19 permitting. So many made the effort to come and pay their respects. It felt comforting being surrounded by good people who, like me, want justice to prevail. I felt heartbroken as I caught a glimpse of her mother on the phone.

There is a need for more police patrols, especially during these vulnerable hours of the day in order to reinstill a sense of security as well as a feeling of being safe and to ensure this does not happen again.

Rest in peace, Paulina Dembska, and sincere condolences to her family and friends.

Stephanie Mizzi, freelance writer and photographer