MPs observe minute of silence for women victims of violence

The date is marked in Croatia in memory of a massacre which happened on 22 September 1999, during a divorce hearing at a Zagreb court, when a suspended Zagreb policeman who was divorcing his wife, Mato Oraskic, opened fire from his service weapon in the courtroom.

Oraskic, who had earlier been suspended over suspicion that he had set his wife's parents' house on fire, shot and killed his wife Gordana Oraskic, her attorney Hajra Prohic, and judge Ljiljana Hvalec. A fourth woman in the room, court typist Sanja Cvetkovic, was shot twice in the back and the head, but survived the incident.

Oraskic was later arrested on the Slovenian border and in November 2000 he became the first person in Croatia to receive the maximum legally proscribed sentence of 40 years in jail.

In 2004 the anniversary of the massacre has officially been made a permanent day of remembrance, marked every year by local NGOs, women's groups, and many public figures to raise awareness about the problem of violence against women.

"On this day we also remember all the other women who lost their lives due to violence... By observing this day, we wish to additionally raise public awareness, point to this social problem and send a clear message about zero tolerance to violence and about the importance of protecting victims and punishing perpetrators" Speaker of Parliament, Gordan Jandrokovic (HDZ), said.

"And special emphasis should be put on recognizing and reporting violence," he added.

"The crime of 22 September 1999 obliges us permanently to be vocal in condemning violence, and to leave a more tolerant society to younger generations," said MP Ljubica Maksimcuk (HDZ), adding that "violence against women and girls is one of the most widespread forms of violence in the world, often going unreported."

MP Ivana Posavec-Krivec (SDP) said that the goal of observing this day must be "to raise public awareness of the problem of violence and to send a message that there is zero tolerance for violence."

"It would be good if we introduced civic education, teaching from the earliest age that violence cannot be tolerated," she added.

"Nothing is more pathetic than a man hitting a woman, or a man committing any act of violence against a woman... Violence against women is present in all societies and the low number of reports is a special problem, for which there are many reasons. Sexual violence is one of the least reported crimes and there are 15 to 20 unreported rapes to every reported one," said MP Marin Miletic (Most).