People who shift their blame on others are like the perpetrators, women’s lobby tells PM

People who shift their own blame onto others can be likened to the behaviour of perpetrators, the Malta Women’s Lobby said in a statement.

It was referring to what Prime Minister Robert Abela had said on Sunday with regards to the killing of a woman last Tuesday.

Today, the Prime Minister stated that “it is clear that the state, country and society didn’t do all that needed to be done”, because if they did, we would not have had three femicides throughout this very year.

How often have we heard this rhetoric?, the group asked. Why do a number of entities choose to state that “society” has failed Bernice Cassar, as well as other victims of femicide?, the group also asked.

Words matter, and the hard truth is that it is the institutions that have failed. And institutions are run by people and funded by those in power, the group said. “In other words, by the state shifting the ‘blame’ onto society as a whole, implying that every member of the population bears equal responsibility for this latest femicide, is a manipulative tactic and a cynical attempt at masking the truth. When those who hold power shift blame, by watering down their responsibility and making empty promises, their behaviour is akin to that of perpetrators who gaslight, minimise their responsibility and give false assurances”, the group said.

“It is all well and good to churn out the usual clichés, that ‘we must do better’, or promising to implement the right reforms to effect change. Bernice Cassar did everything in her power, and more, to keep herself and her children safe”, the group said. Cassar was killed last Tuesday in Kordin. Her husband Roderick Cassar has been charged with her murder.

“We do not need another inquiry to tell us if anything could have been done differently. What we need is action, action that should have been taken when the recommendations of a government study into domestic violence were presented to the authorities a year ago. This same study exposed how victims’ lives are kept on hold because of an under resourced DV unit, exhausted police officers, court delays and a general communication breakdown between relevant entities. A study that remains unpublished has been on the Prime Minister’s desk for 12 months. Words matter, Prime Minister. It’s time to put your money where your mouth is”, the group said.