Hundreds Demanded Preventative Measures Against Domestic Violence with a Protest in Sofia

The government should take preventive measures with amendments to the Penal Code to prevent violence against women and children. This is one of the demands that hundreds of citizens made at protest against gender-based violence at Eagles Bridge in Sofia.

The reason for the protest was Sunday's International Day for Combating Violence against Women and the murders of 28 women and 3 children from their spouses, partners and fathers registered in Bulgaria since the beginning of 2018

The protest was peaceful and the police halted the traffic on Tsarigradsko shose Blvd for about half an hour. The organizer of the event is the Bulgarian Women's Fund, who promised to send a letter to Prime Minister Boyko Borisov and President Rumen Radev, in which they will present their demands for reforms.

They want governments to show that they are genuinely engaged in the problem by commissioning surveys and statistics to show the causes and extent of violence against women and domestic violence in the country and its consequences. A National Counter-Violence Council should be set up at the Council of Ministers to monitor whether and how the government seeks a solution to the problem and conducts information campaigns.

Parliament must change the Penal Code again, where crime is gender-based violence, not just women. In addition, protesters also want the extension of the term "violence" to complement sexual harassment, stalking, systemic psychological violence and marital rape.

Protesters also demand allowing even more money to fight domestic violence based on gender. A database of victims of domestic violence and perpetrators should be set up at the Ministry of Internal Affairs to be accessible to both institutions and non-governmental...

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