‘Preventing femicide isn’t discriminatory’: Parliament concludes second day of femicide debate

Parliament has concluded its second day of discussion on a new Bill that will introduce the concept of femicide to the Criminal Code.

Equality Minister Owen Bonnici kicked off Tuesday’s parliamentary debate on the Bill, which has largely seen bipartisan support in the House.

“We need to give our full support to every victim of violence, regardless of their gender or sex,” he said. 

The Bill will introduce femicide into the Criminal Code as an aggravating circumstance - a factor that 'makes the crime worse' in a court of law with regards to the penalty given.

In the event that a murderer is not given the maximum penalty (life sentence), and that murder is deemed a femicide, this fact will oblige the deciding judge or magistrate to establish a higher penalty against the criminal.

It was drafted by government in response to the murder of Paulina Dembska, who was killed in a public Sliema garden. 20-year-old Abner Aquilina was charged with the murder and is currently facing court proceedings. 

Bonnici shut down any criticisms that the Bill is discriminatory by citing the Council of Europe’s Istanbul Convention. 

“The convention states that special measures that are necessary to prevent and protect women from gender-based violence shall not be considered discrimination under the terms of this convention,” he said. 

He went on to thank Audrey Friggieri, Rene Laiviera, Michael Camilleri, Desiree Attard, Lara Dimitrijevic for their support in drafting the Bill. 

Nationalist MP Maria Deguara emphasised that this law alone will not prevent men from committing or attempting to commit femicide. 

Instead, she stated that government and society must work together and strengthen three key areas: education, security, and mental health. 

Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici praised the Bill for being humanistic, as opposed to materialistic or utilitarian. 

“We’re not talking about these people in an economic sense, or in terms of utility,” he pointed out. “The beauty of our reaction to this is that it affirms the fundamental dignity of human beings.” 

Newly co-opted Nationalist MP Graziella Galea pointed out the need for added security in the streets – by day and by night – to prevent similar situations to Paulina Dembska’s murder. 

“I question whether the incident could have been avoided had police wardens been patrolling the street at the time,” she said. 

Rosianne Cutajar added that introducing femicide to the criminal code does not water downt he gravity of similar situations where a man is victim to gender-based violence. 

“This doesn’t mean that the murder of a man is less serious – but certain circumstances led us here and the situation is clear. There is a specific issue that needs to be addressed.” 

Claudette Buttigieg recounted how her friend was suffering from domestic violence. She noticed her friend was wearing a scarf in summer, and eventually found out that the scarf was covering knife markings.  

“We can’t leave things as they are,” she said. “Women should not be seen as objects – neither sexual objections nor objects of abuse, prostitution, pornography.” 

Labour MP Jonathan Attard was last to speak during the debate. He said that the Bill is a sign of hope for women suffering from domestic abuse. 

“This government is sending a sign of optimism to those women who have since suffered in silence. It is sending a sign of courage and, above everything, a sign of concrete help.”