Prime Minister tells activists government committed to fight gender-based violence

Government is committed to raise awareness and continue to fight dire realities such as rape and femicide, Prime Minister Robert Abela has told women's rights activists.

Sitting alongside Equality Minister Owen Bonnici at Castille, Abela met with experts in the field of human rights and equality to discuss the realities of women, including that of gender-based violence and femicide, a government statement said.

Abela told activists that in order to have a fairer society, it was necessary to continue improving what is established while taking the required decisions based on dialogue to do more. He said that while a number of legislative changes have taken place in recent years, greater awareness was needed.

The meeting came in the wake of Paulina Dembska's murder in Sliema on 2 January. A 20-year-old man, Abner Aquilina, was charged with homicide and rape. He pleaded not guilty and remanded in custody.

Since the murder, multiple NGOs were angered over comments made by the Malta Police Force during a crime conference where they said that Dembska's murder was not linked to her gender. 

A report published at the beginning of the year said that femicide should be made a criminal offence or an aggravating offence of homicide.