Impressive exhibition and lecture about femicide – De Kop

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Westerveld

HAVELTE – The outdoor exhibition is on Thursday in Brasserie OER at the Holtingerveld in Havelte FEMICIDE officially opened with special guest Tessel ten Zweege, author of the book ‘Femicidetill death do us part’, which is a lecture on femicide gave.

The traveling exhibition FEMICIDE presents the stories of twelve women who were killed by their (ex) partners, told by their relatives. The outdoor exhibition can be seen until May 12 at Access Gate Holtingerveld in Havelte. The photos and candid stories make the horror of these murders palpable and show the lifelong impact on the surviving relatives.

By warning number of victims of femicide reducing
With this exhibition, the initiators and the municipality of Westerveld hope to warn women in violent relationships, motivate them to leave this with the right help and reduce the number of victims of violence. femicide reduce. More information about the exhibition Femicide can be found on www.stichtingopenmind.nl/femicide.. “We can no longer save her, but we can tell our story and warn other women about femicide.”

Transgressive behavior is not okay and never the victim’s fault
Councilor Jacob Boonstra emphasized in his speech that violence against women is a social problem that requires urgent action. “Every 8 days a woman is murdered in the Netherlands, often by her (ex)partner. This means that 15 women’s lives have already been taken this year. When you think of violence, you quickly think of physical violence, but mental violence can feel even worse to victims than physical violence. Victim blaming also leaves deep wounds, both for victims and surviving relatives. With victim blaming, the causes of violence are sought within the victim. For example, by asking why she didn’t leave him. And so responsibility is shifted from the perpetrator to the victim. By talking about it with each other without judgment, we can remove the subject from the taboo atmosphere. And with that, as a community, we will draw a clearer line that transgressive behavior is not okay and it can never be the victim’s fault.”

Murdered by a man with the motive of hatred, contempt, pleasure or a sense of possession
Tessel ten Zweege “Femicide follows a fixed script, making it one of the most predictable murders there is. An unambiguous definition of femicide is missing. The definition that I think does the most justice to the victims and the situations is that of Diana Russell; Femicide murder is motivated by a sense of entitlement or superiority over women, arising from pleasure, from sadistic desires toward women, or from the belief that one owns women.”

Red flags in a toxic relationship
From research into femicide it appears that there are clear phases and specific signals – red flags – that significantly increase the chance of escalation of violence or even a fatal outcome. These red flags fall under a specific form of (ex-)partner violence, namely intimate terror. Examples of intimate terror are; coercive control, stalking, psychological manipulation and physical and sexual violence. Open Mind Foundation and the relatives of victims of femicide join forces to draw attention to red flags, inform the general public and provide tips from relatives to victims, bystanders, professionals and society.

Need help or concerns?
Would you like to share your story (anonymously) with a counselor about your own experiences with violence? Or if you are worried about someone around you? This can be done via Chat with Fier! https://www.fier.nl/chat/, call Veilig Thuis 0800 2000 (free and available 24/7) or via the helpline ‘Break the silence’ 0900 9999001. In case of acute danger, call 112.

Recognizing and acknowledging (ex)partner violence?

There is a lot of information material available online about (ex)partner violence. For example:

Short animation from Augeo Foundation that clearly explains coercive control https://vimeo.com/923384808/169e817be8?share=copyThe interactive (review of) webinar about coercive control and intimate terror ‘The invisible remote control’ https://dmzp. nl/webinargemist/The eight-part podcast ‘She is mine’ by Saskia Belleman https://podcastlististen.nl/pod/Zij-is-van-mijThe film ‘She seems to be the problem’: an educational film by Sanne te Pas about intimate terror.https://professionals.verdwenenzelf.org/documentaire/

Tessel ten Zweege – Photo: Supplied