Except in Sofia protest marches "None more" are also held in other major cities of the country. That summed up the BNR.
The protest march in the center of Sofia, where support was expressed for the girls and women who became victims of violence, ended. The event was organized by ”Feminist mobilizations” and it is on the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women – November 25.
There is still a police presence in the area of the Courthouse where the protesters gathered.
The procession passed along Blvd. "Vitosha", blvd. "Patriarch Euthymius", st. "Count Ignatiev" and ended again in front of the Courthouse, as the atmosphere was calm and there was no tension, BTA listed.
The organizers had announced that they were pushing for changes to the Domestic Violence Protection Act (DPA) so that it would start protecting every victim, regardless of length of relationship, race, ethnicity, age, disability, religion, nationality, sexual orientation, economic status. The initiators demand the immediate end of institutional violence against trans women and LGBTI+ people, as well as the establishment of crisis and counseling centers for victims of violence in every area of the country.
At the beginning of the event from "Feminist mobilizations" stated that today they honor the memory of women who lost their lives to violence. Our society is awake to their fates and we will never let the subject be in the background, the organization told the protesters. According to them, violence against women is deeply rooted in the patriarchal structure of our society and the protests are the way to send a clear signal that they will not put up with cultural and social norms that reproduce inequality and oppression.
Tonight, similar protest marches are organized in other cities of the country.
According to data from the Ministry of the Interior, there is a permanent trend of increasing cases of domestic violence, as well as protection orders issued and proceedings initiated for crimes in the conditions of domestic violence. This information was presented earlier today by chief inspector Zornitsa Shumanova, head of the "Domestic Violence" sector. to the Main Directorate “National Police”.
For the period from January 1 to October 30, 2024. 4,320 protection orders were received in regional police departments in the country, compared to 3,631 for the same period in 2023, Shumanova pointed out.
Before it comes to physical domestic violence, there is always psychological harassment - reproaches, insults, curses. We must be absolutely intolerant of all forms of violence. This was stated by psychiatrist Veselin Gerev at a press conference in BTA.
Through one of the recent changes in the ЗЗДН, the circle of people who fall under the scope of the law increases, including those who are in an intimate relationship lasting more than 60 days.
On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, the Bridge in Burgas lights up in orange tonight.
In Stara Zagora, the procession stopped at 6 places along the city's pedestrian zone and ended in front of the courthouse, where the organizers released 18 white balloons, symbolizing the 18 women who lost their lives due to domestic violence since the beginning of the year in our country.< /p>
In Plovdiv, the participants in the procession said that the problem of domestic violence is being ignored, and society and institutions are ashamed, and it is time to change that. People also asked for official statistics on the number of victims, including information on the relationship between perpetrators and victims, the introduction of compulsory sex education in schools as a prevention against violence and the recognition of psychological and economic violence as a crime in the Penal Code.
"Many people ignore him with statements like "If he beats you, he loves you, if I hook you, he likes you.
"We only report those who are killed, and what happens in homes, no one reports it,'' participants in the protest told BNR correspondent Kremena Daneva.