Abuse

According to UNESCO, school violence is a major problem. Its report, Behind the numbers: ending school violence and bullying, published in 2019, shows that more than one in three students (36%) has been involved in a physical fight with another student, and almost one in three (32.4%) has been physically attacked at least once in 2018. 

In other news, the new Hungarian chief of defence staff puts military boot in mouth; more evidence emerges that object found in Polish forest was indeed a Russian cruise missile; and Czechs unveil draft legislation aimed at tightening protection for victims of domestic violence.

An investigation group commissioned by the parliament has prepared a report listing the measures to be taken to "intervene and eliminate child abuse risks," after a shocking case of a woman who was forced to marry at the tender age of 6 came to the forefront.

The case of Alexis Georgoulis, a member of the European Parliament for SYRIZA who resigned after an investigation into alleged sexual abuse, brought back familiar stereotypes about rape, which many of us hoped had been put to rest by now. But since repetition is the only way to deconstruct these cliches and disconnected inferences, let's clarify some points again:

Representatives of farmers have walked out of talks with the government, announcing a new protest rally, after the ruling coalition tabled a bill introducing what has been labelled as animal police.

A 52-year-old woman is expected to appear before an Athens prosecutor after dousing her 57-year-old husband with a flammable liquid and setting him alight.

The domestic violence incident occurred on Holy Thursday evening in the central Athens district of Agios Panteleimonas.

Neighbors who heard the commotion alerted the police.

The increase in violence and bullying at Greek schools is not and should not be treated as a public order issue.

Educators should have the tools to mobilize the school community and social services when they see a student showing problematic behavior, before the problem reaches the police. 

Schools themselves need to be strengthened to control the bullying epidemic.

Femicide and violence against women continues to be a grave problem in Türkiye, some 23 women fell victim to femicide in March, when International Women's Day was marked, reveals a report published by a women's association.

For years, Montenegro has been dogged by reports of torture as a tool of police interrogation. Its response has been woefully inadequate, rights groups say.

The authorities and society have long lost the right to plead innocence and to dismiss as "isolated" all these incidents of teenage violence, all the bullying in an out of school, acts that capture the stereotypically "shocked" public's attention for a few days every time they occur.