Maria, Yu S., Jenny and Tamara. These are four of the names included in the list of at least 21 people who were killed this year, solely for being a woman.
Since the beginning of 2023, the Stop Féminicide blog has counted at least 21 victims of femicide. But as this is based on mentions of femicides reported in press articles, the actual figure is likely even higher. 2023 is on track to be more deadly than 2022, in which a total of 24 such murders were recorded.
This figure has in fact dropped in recent years, from 44 in 2017 (when the organisation started its count) and 39 in 2018. But gains made could be reversed if the situation this year continues.
On 4 August, Engie, 41, and Alexandra, 26, became the latest victims of femicide, both dying within the space of just 24 hours – a new low in the country.
Partner violence
Since the start of the summer, at least four cases of femicide have been recorded in Belgium. On 10 July, 74-year-old Maria V. in Jemeppe was brutally murdered by her son (this is also considered femicide). Just one week later, a 37-year-old woman Yu was killed by her husband in Leuven. Their child was also killed.
At the start of this month, Engie, who was due to celebrate her 42nd birthday on Sunday 6 August, died in hospital after her partner stabbed her several times. It is thought that an argument may have triggered the tragedy. An investigation is currently underway and should determine the reasons that led him to commit the act.
Messages calling out the lack of response by the justice system to femicides. Credit: Belga
On the same day, Alexandra, a young mother aged 26, was killed following an argument with her ex-boyfriend Ethan, aged 21. She had recently broken up with him and had gone to his home on Friday evening to collect some personal belongings.
They got into an argument which escalated, resulting in her falling and hitting her head. Ethan then hit her head on the floor again. He later called the police, stating he thought he had killed her.
On 17 March this year, a double femicide in 24 hours also took place. Yentl H., aged 36, was murdered in Lier, while 28-year-old Daniela, living in Mouscron, was killed on the same day.
Protected by law?
At the end of June, the Belgian Chamber of Representatives adopted a law for the prevention of femicide hailed as a "historic turning point in the fight against gender violence in Belgium".
It enshrines a legal definition for femicide, which is understood as the intentional killing of women because of their gender and establishes enhanced protections for victims of gender-based violence.
The text would also ensure the collection of statistics on femicide and provide training for police officers and magistrates to deal with cases of violence against women, including the language they use, giving victims a choice of sex of the person interviewing them, etc.
"By voting almost unanimously in favour of this text, the political parties are demonstrating that beyond their ideological divisions, they are united in their fight to ensure that these femicides, which are part of a society that is still too marked by patriarchy and relationships of control and domination, are no longer inevitable," the Conseil des Femmes Francophones de Belgique (CFFB) said in response.
