Violence against women shakes Austria up

In Austria, several murders and other acts of violence against women were committed within a few days. Victim protection associations are horrified and are demanding more protection. Now the government wants to make improvements.

Austria has a problem. That’s why on a cool morning this week around 50 people are standing in downtown Vienna and screaming. They shout out their frustration and anger. About the fact that the number of femicides in Austria has increased over the past ten years. About the fact that more women are murdered per capita in Austria than the EU average. And about the fact that victim protection doesn’t work.

“Emotionally, things are getting worse and worse. And politicians finally really have to come up with something. Things can’t go on like they are now,” says a woman who came to the rally. It simply seems as if the problem is not as present in politics as it is especially for women, says another. “I find it very sad that such an event is necessary,” says one participant.

“Violence is considered Petty offense treated”

Seven women have already been murdered in Austria this year. Six of them in the last few days alone. The autonomous women’s shelters counted nine cases of serious violence in the past eight weeks. In addition, the case of a twelve-year-old who was raped multiple times by several boys came to light this week.

Recent cases of serious violence against women vary greatly. But Klaudia Frieben from the Austrian Women’s Ring sees it against a social background: “One has the feeling that violence against women is often still treated as a trivial offense. Or is given too little priority.”

Minister for Women relies on networking

At the beginning of the week, Austria’s Interior Minister Gerhard Karner initially pointed out that the government was already doing enough to combat violence against women. Women’s Minister Susanne Raab warned against falling into political activism. Finally, the responsible ministries called a violence protection summit.

“There are good structures in all federal states, nationwide,” was Minister Raab’s conclusion. It is now important to bundle the established structures that are valuable under a “common roof”. This measure should help to ensure the flow of information and to be able to share information with each other.

“The women didn’t get any help”

Victim protection associations should therefore exchange ideas more. How specifically, when specifically – these questions remained open. In any case, future improvements in victim protection should be made on the basis of data. According to the Interior Ministry, an analysis center at the Federal Criminal Police Office is being set up. It is intended to compare cases of violence and murder committed against women.

The Federal Association of Violence Protection Centers hopes to gain important insight from this. As good as the victim protection measures in Austria are on paper, many women do not take advantage of them. “We know that in most of the murders that have happened in recent years, the women did not seek help,” explains Marina Sorgo, chairwoman of the umbrella organization.

See associations Need for improvement

The umbrella organization also calls for more attention to be paid to the perpetrators. In Austria, perpetrators only receive so-called violence prevention advice once. If a threat is noticed again, the police will not speak to them again. According to the victim protection associations, there is also a need for improvement in bans on entry and approach. The perpetrators often find out by mail and too late when a ban has been extended.

The debate is in full swing. In the Austrian media, the discussion about the high number of femicides is heating up again. Right-wing populists blame migration; left-wing groups the patriarchate.

Klaudia Frieben, the chairwoman of the Austrian Women’s Ring, is particularly tired of the fact that violence against women is only ever discussed when bad acts of violence become known again. “Violence against women is one of the biggest crises in democracy. And it must be constantly combated.”