More cooperation needed for growing domestic violence problem

Domestic violence is on the rise in Croatia and a recent string of horrific murders of women has forced the state to call for a meeting of all relevant institutions in order to discuss better mutual cooperation in combating the growing problem.Sanja Sarnavka from women's rights association B.a.B.e. says that there is not enough mutual communication between the relevant institutions and that too much bureaucracy prevents efficiency."There is no team approach, everyone is just concerned with filling out forms, satisfying their supervisors, and adhering to various regulations while the problems are always individual," she says.The Croatian public has been shaken recently by a wave of domestic killings, the latest one involving a prominent Croatian Radio Television journalist who was stabbed to death by her husband last Friday night.At a seven-hour meeting held in Zagreb, judges, lawyers, police, prosecutors, social workers and activists all talked about their frustrations in solving the problem of domestic violence. Social workers complained about the slowness of judicial procedures, while judges asked social workers for quicker and more detailed reports.But while the government has promised to examine the problem in order to find solutions and better state efficiency, it has at the same time decreased funding for some organizations and shelters, the daily newspaper Vecernji List writes.

Source: Croatian Times Online News