Our Magazine
Brussels Morning Online Newspaper
Sunday, February 28, 2021
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
    • About Us
  • EU institutions
    • Commission
    • Parliament
    • Council
  • Europe
  • World
  • Economy
  • Culture and Society
  • In Depth
    • Ambassador’s Corner
    • The American Angle
    • Europe With Transparency
    • Sustainable Perspective
    • Place de la Bourse
    • The Macro-Economist
    • Southeast Europe
Brussels Morning Online Newspaper
  • Home
    • About Us
  • EU institutions
    • Commission
    • Parliament
    • Council
  • Europe
  • World
  • Economy
  • Culture and Society
  • In Depth
    • Ambassador’s Corner
    • The American Angle
    • Europe With Transparency
    • Sustainable Perspective
    • Place de la Bourse
    • The Macro-Economist
    • Southeast Europe
Brussels Morning Online Newspaper
No Result
View All Result
Home Europe

Serbian rape testimonies spark regional women’s movements

Ivan Fischer by Ivan Fischer
5 February 2021
in Europe
Serbian rape testimonies spark regional women’s movements

Men who are raping women, domestic violence, The concept of sexual harassment against women and rape.

Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Brussels (Brussels Morning) A regional MeToo-like movement is growing in the Western Balkans, and thousands of women are starting to speak up for the first time about their personal experiences of rape and sexual harrasment by authority figures, many of them  considered to be respectable members of society.

The tide was unleashed in mid-January, after Serbian actress Milena Radulović accused influential acting coach Miroslav Aleksić of raping her when she was 17 years old. She led a group of actresses who took their accusations to the police, and 68-year old Aleksić was soon arrested for multiple counts of sexual assault and rape.

As news of the case crossed the borders into neighbouring Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, social networks exploded with hashtags “NisiSama” (You are not alone) and “NisamTražila” (I never asked for it), prompting hundreds of public and anonymous stories from women suffering harassment or worse in universities, at work, within family, in hospitals, and everywhere else.

Conservative societies

The “Nisam Tražila” Facebook page, started in response to Radulović’s testimony, had over 40.000 followers by the end of January. In just two weeks in Croatia, there were as many sexual harassment complaints filed as in the entire 2020.

Even though Bosnia, Croatia and Serbia have all ratified the Istanbul Convention on preventing violence against women, their societies remain conservative, and women are often pressured into silence by their family or coworkers, in a society that often shames those who take their sexual lives or other private matters before the courts. 

Outspoken women’s rights figures are regularly threatened and insulted on social media, and many of the victims’ testimonies are dismissed because the women “didn’t speak out sooner”. Court convictions for sexual harassment are few and far between.

Movement facing backlash

Despite the movement growing more vocal and gathering large numbers in the past three weeks, institutional opposition remains strong – especially within ostensibly independent institutions.

Croatian media are currently following two sets of allegations – one against a high-ranking official at the national broadcaster HRT, and one against a retired professor at the country’s largest university in Zagreb. In each instance, the institutions’ heads were informed of the allegations but refused to investigate or even acknowledge them.

Matko Klarić, head of the police precinct in Grude near the Croatian town of Zadar, was allowed to keep his job, even after several sexual harassment allegations by his female officers were found to be credible. A mob of friends, family and coworkers gathered to protest his trial in late January, holding placards that perhaps ironically best illustrated the reason for their backlash against the movement: “Today Matko, tomorrow the rest of us!”

Tags: Main-Sliderrape
Ivan Fischer

Ivan Fischer

Ivan is a Zagreb-based journalist with extensive experience in covering European and global politics, economy and emerging technology challenges. He is a foreign policy reporter for the leading Croatian daily Jutarnji list, as well as an alumnus of several journalism training programmes organised by Thomson Reuters Foundation and Robert Bosch Stiftung.

Latest post

Romania’s strained health system leaves non-Covid patients behind

Romania’s strained health system leaves non-Covid patients behind

2 days ago
European Research Group wants Northern Ireland Protocol scrapped

European Research Group wants Northern Ireland Protocol scrapped

2 days ago

Most Read

  • The EU will not learn to speak the language of power as long as Germany does not

    The EU will not learn to speak the language of power as long as Germany does not

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • For US Cybersecurity China is a bigger concern than Russia

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Consumption of plant-based alternatives is disconcerting to meat and dairy industries

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Biden Administration opens the door to international green energy know-how

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Why women make great leaders — lessons from the pandemic

    0 shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Subscribe
Facebook Twitter Youtube LinkedIn

About Us

Brussels Morning is a daily online newspaper based in Belgium. BM publishes unique and independent coverage on international and European affairs. With a Europe-wide perspective, BM covers policies and politics of the EU, significant Member State developments, and looks at the international agenda with a European perspective.

Category

  • Ambassador’s Corner
  • Commission
  • Council
  • Culture and Society
  • Diplomacy
  • Economy
  • EU Institutions
  • Europe
  • Europe With Transparency
  • Features
  • In Depth
  • Member States
  • Middle East Eye
  • Opinion
  • Our pick
  • Parliament
  • Place de la Bourse
  • Southeast Europe
  • Sustainable Perspective
  • The American Angle
  • The Macro-Economist
  • Uncategorised
  • US Elections
  • World

More info

  • About Us
  • Advertising
  • Cookies Policy
  • Contact Us
  • FAQ
  • Jobs

Brussels Morning Newspaper - All Rights Reserved © 2020

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About Us
  • EU Institutions
    • Parliament
    • Commission
    • Council
  • Europe
  • World
  • Member States
  • Economy
  • Culture and Society
  • In Depth
    • Ambassador’s Corner
    • Europe With Transparency
    • Place de la Bourse
    • The Macro-Economist
    • Sustainable Perspective
    • The American Angle
    • Southeast Europe
  • Magazine

Brussels Morning Newspaper - All Rights Reserved © 2020

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.

SAVE & ACCEPT