Gov't sends domestic violence bill to parliament

The Croatian government on Thursday forwarded to parliament for consideration amendments to the Act on Domestic Violence to facilitate the separation of perpetrators of domestic violence from their families before the launching of court proceedings.

The separation of a perpetrator of domestic violence from their family will be very simple - police bring the perpetrator before the judge and the judge makes a ruling to that effect.

The government's bill has been brought into line with the Penal Code, where domestic violence has been restored as a criminal act after it was removed in 2011, it envisages stricter penalties for perpetrators, introduces a catalogue of victims' rights, and introduces the obligation to interview victims of domestic violence.

Speaking in the context of the most recent domestic violence cases, in Krusevo and Karlovac, which resulted in fatalities, Justice Minister Orsat Miljenic said that the problem of domestic violence had been recognised by the national judiciary very late, in 1998.

"The fact that the system recognised domestic violence only in 1998 shows how much effort we still have to make and how much as a society we must work to teach children from the start that violence, especially domestic violence, is harmful. We have to raise standards in that regard and we will have to work on that for many years to come," the minister warned.

(Hina) rml

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