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Final report on the implementation of the Campaign to Combat Domestic Violence
On the grounds of Guidelines for submission of the final report on the implementation of the National Campaign to Combat Domestic Violence against Women the Republic of Croatia submits the following Report: In conformity with the plans and recommendations of the Council of Europe, the Government of the Republic of Croatia and the Ministry of Family, Veterans' Affairs and Intergenerational Solidarity joined the implementation of the Campaign to Combat Violence against Women, including family violence. Preparations for the implementation of the Campaign to Combat Domestic Violence against Women in the Republic of Croatia began in January 2006 when the Ministry of Family, Veterans’ Affairs and Intergenerational Solidarity established a Committee for the Implementation of the Campaign to Combat Domestic Violence against Women. Ministry of Family, Veterans' Affairs and Intergenerational Solidarity and the Committee prepared a Program of Campaign Activities on the national level, which was, according to the Recommendation of the Council of Europe, launched on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, 25th November 2006, and ended on the International Women's Day – 8th March 2008. Thematic areas of the Campaign to Combat Domestic Violence against Women in the Republic of Croatia Objectives of the Campaign in the Republic of Croatia, following the Campaign Plan of the Council of Europe, and in accordance with the Program of activities for the implementation of the Campaign to Combat Domestic Violence against Women, were realized in the following areas of activity: a) Legal and political measures; b) Support and protection of victims of violence; c) Collection of data, and d) Awareness raising.
b) In respect of fulfilling the tasks from the area of support and protection of victims, we must point out the drafting of the new National Strategy of Protection against Family Violence for the period 2008 – 2010. The objectives of the National Strategy, among others, are to harmonize the legislation of the Republic of Croatia with the demands arising from international and regional documents, to improve the implementation in the areas of protection against family violence, to improve the social status of the victim, to ensure employment to victims, to encourage the operation of civil society organizations protecting victims of family violence, to encourage the establishment of secret safe houses for victims of family violence, to institute a system providing support to victims/witnesses of family violence, to promote the rights of victims and provide support to victims and witnesses of family violence and sensitize the public about the issue of family violence. The National Strategy includes 49 measures divided in six areas, each of the areas including an analysis and assessment of the situation, objectives and measures with elaborated activities, indicators, carriers, implementation schedules and necessary financial resources. The areas of the new National Strategy are the following: Education of professionals working in the area of protection against family violence, Psycho-social treatment of perpetrators of family violence, Analysis and implementation of legislation in the area of protection against family violence, Safe houses and support to victims of family violence, Improvement of the status of victim in proceedings they take part in, and Sensibilization of the public for the issue of family violence. On the grounds of program activities, Ministry of Family, Veterans' Affairs and Intergenerational Solidarity financially supported a series of projects and programs of civil society organizations protecting victims of family violence, and provided an amount of 1,346,600.00 HRK for that purpose in 2006, followed by an additional 1,789,300.00 HRK in 2007. The programs established for the protection of rights of women and children victims of family violence also launched a network of counselling centres for victims of family violence in Zagreb, Istria, Primorje-Gorski Kotar, Brod-Posavina, Bjelovar-Bilogora, Split-Dalmatia, Zadar, Koprivnica-Križevci, Karlovac, Sisak-Moslavina, Vukovar-Srijem and Osijek-Baranja Counties. c) As concerns the area of data collection, we must point out systematic collection of statistical data about the problem of family violence conducted by the Ministry of the Interior. In view of the fact that in the Republic of Croatia, according to the Article 4 of the Act on Protection against Family Violence, family violence is regarded as misdemeanour, while according to the Article 215a of the Penal Code it is regarded as a criminal activity, police statistics include data on both misdemeanours and criminal acts of violent behaviour in family. Statistical data on family violence in general include the number of reported requests for police intervention and the number of actual police interventions. In relation to family violence misdemeanour police statistics encompass: number of committed family misdemeanours; number of perpetrators directly apprehended and brought before the magistrate court; number of police complaints to the decisions of the magistrate court; number of affected persons according to age and gender; relation of the perpetrator and victim (parental relation including parent-child relation, parent-adopted child, parent-foster child, etc., i.e. partner relationship, including married and non-married partners); number of perpetrators held by the court; number and type of proposed protective measures according to the Act on Protection against Family Violence; number and type of implemented measures that were, according to the Act on Protection against Family Violence, placed in the authority of the police (protective measure of a restraint order, protective measure of relief from abuse or stalking of a person subjected to family violence, protective measure of removal from the flat, house or other form of housing); number of reported perpetrators of misdemeanours, i.e. healthcare staff, social welfare employees, psychologists, social workers, social pedagogues and educational staff who did not report family violence they became aware of while performing their duties; number of reported perpetrators of misdemeanours who did not act in accordance with the stated protective measure. In relation to the criminal act of violent behaviour within family, police statistics encompass the following: number of criminal acts of family violence; number of reported perpetrators; number of affected persons according to age and gender; relation of perpetrator and the victim (parental relation including parent-child relation, parent-adopted child, parent-foster child, etc., i.e. partner relationship, including married and non-married partners), and the circumstances of the criminal act of violent family behaviour in families with other criminal acts, particularly the criminal act of neglect and abuse of a child or a minor. Particular news in the conduct of the police, i.e. the process of collecting and maintaining statistical data, is the form entitled "Report on intervention upon the information about family violence". The purpose of the form is to aid the police official intervening in case of family violence in order to provide the victim of family violence with all the necessary information and successfully conduct the intervention in individual cases. The stated documents improve the intervention of the police in cases of family violence according to the Rules of Procedure in Cases of Family Violence. The Rules of Procedure include a set of precisely determined measures of competent bodies in their proceedings, forms, content and method of cooperation of the bodies involved in revealing and eliminating family violence, and providing aid and protection to a person exposed to any kind or modality of family violence (police, social welfare centres, healthcare and educational institutions, judicial bodies). d) The area of awareness raising had a special place in the implementation of the Campaign in the Republic of Croatia since future development of public awareness presents foundations for eliminating violent behaviour. To that effect, as a particularly important objective we emphasize the presentation of family violence in all its instances as unacceptable social behaviour that should be firmly sanctioned. Awareness raising of the public was a special goal of the Campaign in the Republic of Croatia, and in that sense a great number of activities were conducted, which among others, included Campaign billboards posted all over Croatia, broadcasting of the Campaign radio-jingles in which persons from public life suggested that violence had no excuse and broadcasting of radio shows featuring deputy prime minister of the Government and the minister of family, veterans’ affairs and intergenerational solidarity on the subject of family, family violence and violence against women. Furthermore, the Ministry of Family, Veterans' Affairs and Intergenerational Solidarity printed promotional materials for the Campaign, which were, besides billboards, included flyers, posters in B2 format and badges, distributed to the citizens and to civil society organizations for further distribution.
Crucial dates for the implementation of the Campaign on the national level were linked to 8th March – International Women’s Day, 15th May – International Family Day, 22nd September – National Day of Combating Violence against Women and 25th November – International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. At the exact date of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women – 25th November 2006, the Campaign was launched with a public presentation in the quarters of the Government of the Republic of Croatia. A round table "Economic Violence against Women", supported by the Ministry of Family, Veterans' Affairs and Intergenerational Solidarity was held, while the Croatian Red Cross shot a TV video "Report Violence against Women" screened on the Croatian television. On the occasion of the International Women’s Day, 8th March 2007, a round table entitled "Systematic financing of civil society organizations providing direct protection to victims of family violence" took place, and a reception was organized in the Government of the Republic of Croatia for the members of the Implementation committee of the Campaign to Combat Domestic Violence against Women, delegates in the Croatian Parliament, district prefects, mayors, ambassadors in the Republic of Croatia and representatives of civil society organizations providing aid and support to victims of family violence. Celebrating the International Family Day 15th May 2007, an incentive was given to authorized bodies on the local level to organize information-educational workshops with children on the subject of family violence, with the aim of sensitizing for this issue, and providing more effective protection of victims and other family members. Furthermore, SOS phone for women was set up, for women with disabilities victims of violence and the Guide for Media Reporting on Family Violence was presented. There was also a contest for the "Company - Friend of Family", and the award went to the company Ericsson Nikola Tesla for results achieved in 2006, i.e. for achieving friendly atmosphere for the employees – parents and their families. On 9th and 10th May 2007, international seminar entitled "Active Participation of Men in Combating Domestic Violence" took place organized by the Ministry of Family, Veterans' Affairs and Intergenerational Solidarity and the Council of Europe Directorate General of Human Rights – Gender Equality Department. On the National Day of Combating Violence against Women, 22nd September 2007, a wreath was placed in the building of the Municipal Court in Zagreb, and additional postage stamps were introduced for voluntary purchase with a recognizable logo of the Campaign, which was in sale from 22nd September to 25th November 2007. The stamp was printed in the edition of 50,000 samples, and its nominal value was 1.15 HRK. Financial resources collected from the sale of the stamp, were donated at the end of the year to organizations managing shelters for victims of violence: to KORAK - a Women’s group from Karlovac, the Autonomous women’s house in Zagreb and Women’s Help Now, SOS phone line for women and children victims of family violence. Amended edition of the Address Book of Institutions, Organizations and Other Bodies Providing Assistance, Support and Protection to Victims of Family Violence was also published. On the eve of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, 25th November 2007, a press conference took place on the occasion of opening the new premises of women and children shelter of the Autonomous Women’s House Zagreb, while the deputy prime minister and minister of Family, Veterans' Affairs and Intergenerational Solidarity, Mrs. Jadranka Kosor, LLB, visited the premises of the newly opened shelter. On the International Women’s Day, 8th March 2008, the closing celebration of the Campaign took place in Sisak, followed by the opening of a new Family Centre in Sisak-Moslavina County, and a presentation of the results of the Campaign on the level of the Republic of Croatia, at which occasion awards were given to the City of Karlovac and Vukovar-Srijem County for their achievements in the combat against family violence and violence against women, and to the employee of the Ministry of the Interior and the president of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, whose activities contributed to the elimination of family violence and violence against women.
At the same time, a particularly important Campaign activity was the inclusion of public persons – men in the implementation of the Campaign, namely the President of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, Ph.D. Ivo Sanader, president of the Supreme Court Branko Hrvatin and president of the Administrative Court, Ph.D. Ivica Kujundžić, president of the Republic of Croatia Stjepan Mesić, president of the Croatian Parliament Vladimir Šeks and representatives in the Croatian Parliament, president of the Croatian Football Association Vlatko Marković and representatives of the First Croatian Football League Professional Clubs’ Association, president of the Constitutional Court, prof. Ph.D. Petar Klarić and judges of the Constitutional Court and president of the board of the Croatian Post office and other members of the board. Assessment of the effects of the Council of Europe Campaign In accordance with the guidelines for submission of the Final Report on the implementation of the national Campaign, we are providing the answers to question of the Council of Europe Workgroup for the purpose of assessment of the effects of the Campaign. 1. Is any and every act of violence against women criminalised in your country? X Yes □ No Please specify: Punishment of family violence acts is foreseen in the provision of the Act on Protection against Family Violence and the Penal Code in which acts of violence are stipulated as misdemeanours, i.e. criminal acts. Act on Protection against Family Violence defines family violence as: "Any application of physical force or physical coercion against the integrity of a person, any other practice of one family member that can cause or give rise to the threat of causing physical and psychical pain, feeling of fear or personal endangerment or violation of dignity, physical assault regardless of whether physical injury was inflicted, verbal attacks, insults, cursing, and calling names and other forms of rough molestation, sexual harassment, stalking and all other forms of molestation, wrongful isolation or limitation of freedom of movement or communication with third persons, or destruction of property or an attempt to do so." The penalty for misdemeanour ranges from 1,000.00 to 10,000.00 HRK or imprisonment in the period of sixty days. Aggravating circumstances, according to this Act, more severely punished, are repetition of violence, perpetration or repetition of violence in the presence of a child or a minor, violence perpetrated at the expense of a child or a minor. Penal Code defines violent family behaviour in the following manner: "Family member who degrades another family member by violence, molestation or particularly intrepid behaviour." Criminal act of family violence is punishable with the penalty of imprisonment for a period of 6 months to 5 years. Apart from family violence against women, other forms of violence against women, for example, sexual violence (among married or not married partners or other persons), sexual intercourse through coercion, sexual molestation at workplace, wrongful termination of pregnancy and solicitation, are also punishable according to the legislation of the Republic of Croatia. 2. Is violence committed by a partner or former partner punished more severely than violence among strangers (e.g. gender based violence as such or the abuse of power will be considered an aggravating circumstance)? X Yes □ No Please specify: In the Republic of Croatia, Penal Code stipulates criminal acts of Rape (Article 188), Sexual intercourse through abuse of authority (Article 191) and Violent Family Behaviour (Article 215a). The provisions of this Act stipulate the penalty of imprisonment for the perpetration of the act of rape, done by a present or former partner (Article 89 of the Penal Code), for a period of 3 to 10 years, for the perpetration of the criminal act of sexual intercourse through misuse of authority, the Act stipulates the penalty of imprisonment for a period of 6 months to 3 years, while for the act of family violence the Act stipulates the penalty of imprisonment for a period of 6 months to 5 years. Following the above, stipulated penalty is higher for an act of violence perpetrated by a partner or a former partner. 3. Are victims enabled to seek justice in a human manner (e.g. specialised courts on domestic violence, specialised units within the police, the public prosecutor or the judiciary)?
X Yes □ No Please specify: In conformity with the justice reform and provisions of the Act on Courts, the establishment of family departments in regular courts is underway in the Republic of Croatia. Furthermore, with the aim of protecting victims of violence, Ministry of the Interior employs specialized police officials for juvenile delinquency leading and coordinating team work within the police system on the protection against family violence, who are authorized to act in cases where there is reasonable doubt that a misdemeanour or a criminal act of family violence has been committed. Besides the above, in the Republic of Croatia, the Office of Ombudsperson for Gender Equality was also established, which, according to its determined scope of activities and authority, considers cases of gender equality violations and discrimination of individuals or groups of individuals perpetrated by state administrative bodies, local and regional government bodies and other bodies with public authority, employees of these bodies or other legal or natural persons. Practice in cases of family violence and the satisfaction of victims’ need for justice, in the Republic of Croatia, is particularly stipulated in the Rules of Procedure in Cases of Family Violence. 4. Does a national emergency 24/7 help-line exist free of charge for victims of domestic violence in your country? X Yes □ No Please specify: In the Republic of Croatia, civil society organisations manage SOS phone lines for victims of violence. SOS phone lines are available 24/7, while advisory help is provided by the activists of these organizations, i.e. female attorneys, social workers and psychologists. 5. Have safe shelters been set up for victims of domestic violence in an adequate ratio in your member state?1 □ Yes X No Please, specify the number and type: There is a total of 14 shelters for women and children victims of violence in the Republic of Croatia, which are open and working in the areas of 10 counties. Shelters are equipped with accommodation for women and their children, with a total of 316 beds. Two new shelters are being opened soon in areas where there is no accommodation for victims of violence. 6. Is administrative data being collected on victims of domestic violence? X Yes □ No Please, specify which agencies collect these data:
7. Is domestic violence considered as a human rights violation to be addressed in your legal system? X Yes □ No |
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