The Paulina Dembska rape and murder shocked the nation. It had wall-to-wall coverage for a few days, then withered away. NGOs and women rights activists have often argued that femicide cases get media attention for a few days and are then forgotten.

This is sadly true. We cannot wait for another crime to occur before action is taken, but we often do.

Unfortunately, misogynous, and patriarchal attitudes are still present in our communities.

Paulina’s murder reignited a thorough discussion on the criminalisation of femicide in Malta.

The United Nations Vienna Declaration on Femicide recognises “that femicide is the killing of women and girls because of their gender, which can take the form of, inter alia: 1) the murder of women as a result of intimate partner violence; 2) the torture and misogynist slaying of women; 3) killing of women and girls in the name of “honour”; 4) targeted killing of women and girls in the context of armed conflict; 5) dowry-related killings of women; 6) killing of women and girls because of their sexual orientation and gender identity; 7) the killing of aboriginal and indigenous women and girls because of their gender; 8) female infanticide and gender-based sex selection feticide; 9) genital mutilation related femicide; 10) accusations of witchcraft and 11) other femicides connected with gangs, organised crime, drug dealers, human trafficking, and the proliferation of small arms.”

Locally, there has been a discussion on whether femicide should be a distinct criminal offence. The Women’s Rights Foundation together with the University of Malta have launched an EU-funded awareness campaign aimed at preventing femicide.

Among the main messages of the campaign is the need to see the warning signs and risk factors associated with femicide and debunk misconceptions and myths that obscure the foundations of violence against women and femicide.

Last February, the government announced that the cabinet has approved a set of amendments to the Criminal Code aimed at “enhancing our fight against gender-based violence and introducing the concept of femicide in the Criminal Code”.

According to a government press statement,  three main changes will occur: the law will now be providing a list of femicidal circumstances that will guide the court for a harsher penalty when a person is found guilty of homicide; the law will also be ensuring that homicides with femicidal circumstances would be excluded from qualifying as being an excusable homicide on the basis of the so-called defence of sudden passion; and the law will also similarly regulate the offence of attempted homicide undertaken in femicidal circumstances.

This is a step in the right direction, however a deeper analysis on crimes involving women is equally necessary.

Introducing femicide in local laws is a step in the right direction- Alessia Psaila Zammit

In the paper ‘Femicide, An Evolutionary Psychological Perspective’, scholars Margo Wilson, Martin Daly and Joanna E. Scheib explain that “homicide is gendered” since the circumstances in which men and women kill, and are killed, tend to be quite different. They also argue that demographic and motivating factors must be considered when analysing crimes and gender.

They further explain that most male-victim homicides occur “in the context of competitive conflicts among men”. They state that in the case of female victims, the fact that she is a woman has proven in most cases to be relevant.

The authors explain that “killings of women are overwhelmingly perpetrated by men. Most notably a large proportion of slain women are killed by husbands and many others are killed in contexts suggesting elements of sexual motivation”.

The factors outlined by these authors are generic, they cannot strictly apply to each crime. Indeed, no crime is identical to another, however such analysis allows us to better understand if femicide should be identified as distinct criminal offence.

By recognising femicide as a distinct criminal offence, we are allowing for the proper development of legal measures, research, adequate punishment for perpetrators and effective action for prevention and reduction of such violent acts.

Many countries do not yet recognise femicide as a distinct criminal offence. Malta should not only focus on the legal aspect of femicide in local laws, but act as a leader in encouraging the proper collection of data related to femicide on an EU and international level.

We need reliable and accurate data from around the globe to better define and achieve a deeper understanding of femicide. Such data is crucial for identifying the best measures for treating, preventing and reducing femicide on a worldwide level.

Our step towards introducing femicide in local laws will be a step in the right direction but our actions should not stop there.  To strengthen equality, women rights and human rights, we have an obligation in ensuring that we also encourage other member states and other non-EU countries to participate in the collection of proper and reliable data that will further allow research and understanding on femicide.

We owe it to Dembska and to all the women whose lives were cut short. The horrible reality of gender-based violence must be tackled at source. We owe it to our children and future generations.

Alessia Psaila Zammit, lawyer and bioethics professional