On Thursday, the Women's Forum of the Social Democratic Party warned that Croatia is "the third country in the European Union for the murder of women" and emphasised the importance of preventing violence, as these figures are unforgivable and terrifying.

“We are the third country in the European Union for the murder of women. This data is alarming and these figures are frightening and unforgivable. We can talk about many areas and express different opinions, about everything but this. That is why we are in favour of investing heavily in education and strengthening its role in preventing violence,” said the SDP Women’s Forum.

The forum warned that violence against women is one of the most common and serious human rights violations in the world today and that it is insufficiently reported due to social stigmatisation, but also due to the lack of systematic and clear punishment of perpetrators.

“The figures do not speak in our favour. The statistics show that we are still a long way from the equality that we propagate, at least declaratively, as a modern, developed society. We are far from it, but as long as we are aware that we must fight and strive for more, as long as we march, our path has meaning and the fight is not in vain,” said the forum on the eve of International Women’s Day on 8 March.

Lower wages, unpaid work

They also warned that women are less protected in the labour market and feel the effects of inflation more because they work in lower-paid jobs.

“The average net salary of women is €66 less than the average net salary of men,” the SDP Women’s Forum emphasised, calling for equal pay for equal work and professional qualifications, more women in management positions and a decent pension for all women, noting that the average pension for men is 20.4% higher than that of women.

Moreover, women do a lot of unpaid work at home and thus contribute in a special way to the development and maintenance of society, the forum explained in a press release, warning against the strengthening of movements against women’s rights.

“One of them, which we see every first Saturday of the month, is men’s prayer, which even many church dignitaries are ashamed of and reject. They pray that we remain underpaid, that we are oppressed, that we do not have the right to make our own decisions about proper healthcare, our sexuality and our independence,” the SDP Women’s Forum continued.

It campaigns for women’s healthcare, the right to health education for children and adolescents, contraception, safe and free abortion without any traumatisation, including psychological trauma.