Letta declares war on violence against women

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Letta declares war on violence against women

By Sandra Cordon (ANSA.IT) 16:41, November 27, 2013

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Rome, November 25 - It is time to "declare war on violence against women" a crime that has a cultural dimension that has grown from generations of sexist attitudes, Premier Enrico Letta said Monday.

During a news conference on the UN's International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, Letta called for "effective" action against a crime that he said "is the daughter of psychological legacies and attitudes, collective and individual, that are unfortunately still present in Italy". As he spoke, two women who have survived vicious domestic abuse became two public faces of the issue on Monday.

A former beauty queen called for women who are victims of violence to find the courage to report the crimes to police and fight for justice.

"Open the door of the home and denounce (violence by domestic partners)," said Rosaria Aprea, a former Miss Macerata Campania, a town located 25 kilometers north of Naples.

She described being so badly beaten by an ex-boyfriend earlier this year that she required three surgeries including removal of her spleen, leaving her without a navel.

Aprea said she now has "a scarred memory of a sick love that was about strong physical and psychological violence".

Meanwhile, Italian lawyer Lucia Annibali, who was disfigured in an acid attack ordered by her ex-boyfriend, said Monday that as painful as the event was, she is "thankful" for the opportunities it has presented.

"I am thankful my face was hurt," said Annibali, honoured Monday by President Giorgio Napolitano who gave her the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic.

"It gave me the strength to be here...it made me be who I wanted to be," Annibali told 300 students in Parma.

The lawyer, who was attacked in her home in Pesaro in April when an assailant threw acid in her face on the orders of her ex-boyfriend, said she was raised to believe in herself.

"Today I feel in control of my life and my feelings," she said.

Women who fear violence at the hands of the mafia, especially when they testify against mobsters, are a special case, said House Speaker Laura Boldrini who met Monday with the daughter of Lea Garofalo, a mafia wife who was brutally murdered for her testimony against the Calabrian 'Ndrangheta mafia.

Boldrini said Garofalo was a victim on two fronts: as a woman and as an informant against the 'Ndrangheta whose testimony led to 17 arrests before she was murdered in 2009 to silence her. High levels of violence in Italy against women by men they know has led the Italian government to bring in stronger measures to protect victims and punish offenders.

Still, Italian authorities say that 128 murders of women by familiar men have been reported to date this year.

Statistics released last week showed that reports of domestic violence against women jumped by 53% in the past two years, despite efforts to counter abuse. Violence in the home against women, measured between January 1 and October 1, was 53% higher than reported during the same time period two years earlier, according to the research compiled by the Sexual and Domestic Violence Assistance organization (SVSD) at Milan's Policlinico hospital.

As well, total reported cases for violence against women climbed by 23% compared with two years earlier, the research showed, with an increase of 111 reported incidents for a total of 590 cases.

The increase in cases came at the same time Italian authorities passed new laws to toughen penalties for violence against women.

Letta described "a cultural battle" that will be needed to create a change in men's attitudes.

"We want you to raise your voice about this issue," said Letta, who also stressed the need for education to change longstanding "negative and shameful" attitudes that see women as property to be owned and controlled by men. Such changes will take time, "but I am absolutely convinced that the battle will be won, there is a great collective effort on this issue by the government," said Letta. Statistics show that more than 70% of women worldwide have experienced violence at least once, said the Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon. Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said Monday that the statistics demonstrate the need "to engage with force together to eradicate all forms of oppression and injustice through laws, but also through campaigns, awareness-raising and educational activities".