PAN calls for “cross-party commitment” to combat domestic violence and protect victims

After a visit to Espaço Júlia, in Lisbon, which supports victims of domestic violence , Inês de Sousa Real advocated the creation of more shelters for victims of this crime, stressing that, currently, “they continue not to leave their homes, precisely because they do not have spaces that allow them to be sheltered”.

The PAN leader also expressed concern about “the misinformation and culture of hate that is being spread on social media” and the “difficulty that this brings to new generations in not backing down in the fight against violence and inequality, particularly gender inequality”.

«We have to work together, as a society, with the various actors, so that society creates other references (…) that is why today we have public figures who have come to give voice to this cause, because domestic violence needs answers and a cross-party commitment», argued Inês de Sousa Real, who was accompanied in this campaign action by rapper NBC and Vula Tsetsi, vice-president of the European Green Party (EPP).

Inês de Sousa Real asked that the discussion of this topic not become a “pitched battle in parliament over ideology”, but rather that we move towards a “national commitment by everyone to give a voice to victims” and combat the numbers of this type of crime in Portugal.

The PAN leader defended, as possible measures to combat domestic violence, the extension of the limitation periods for complaints, as well as responses beyond legislation, such as focusing on “public policies of greater proximity and support for the victim”.

Asked whether there has been a lack of political will in parliament to respond to these victims, Sousa Real lamented that the debate is “captured, above all, by the extreme right”, focusing on proposals such as chemical castration, instead of “a serious debate on the mechanisms and public responses” needed.

“It is with great astonishment that we have seen the government follow the far-right agenda and eliminate the “The Right to Be” guide from schools. Because we cannot forget that supporting victims also involves, for example, attacks on LGBTQIA+ people, particularly young people, and for that reason, there is still a long way to go,” he stressed.

As part of Europe Day, Sousa Real also stated that the European debate is currently “very polarized” around issues such as Defense or energy sovereignty, calling for the defense of social rights and the green transition not to be left behind.

Greek Vula Tsetsi, vice-president of the European Greens, also told journalists that, although Portugal was the first country to ratify the Istanbul Convention – an international treaty to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence – there are still many cases of domestic violence in the country.

Rapper NBC justified his participation in this campaign action with solidarity for victims of violence, adding that everyone has «people close to them who suffer from violence» and also revealing that he has already helped some of these victims «to go to [Espaço] Júlia and other places» in search of support.

«Inês [de Sousa Real] invited me and I will always be present, because I want my children, my mother and my sisters to know that I want to improve myself, knowing that in any situation that happens I will be ready to say no», he added.

Photo: PAN – People Animals Nature