To,

 The National Audiovisual Council

 In the attention of,

Mrs. Laura Corina Georgescu, President

 

Referring to: Incorporation of the public interest message in the Regulatory Code of Audiovisual Content “Domestic violence is punishable by imprisonment! Call 112! “

Dear Madam,

Necuvinte Association is a private legal entity with non-patrimonial, independent purpose, organized according to Law no. 246/2005 having as its main activity the fight against domestic violence and abuses towards women and children.

Violence affects women regardless of their social status, level of education or financial situation, both in urban and rural areas. It does not take ethnicity, sexual orientation or religion into account. 1 in 4 women is the victim of one or more forms of violence from the intimate partner throughout her life.

Violence against women includes crimes that disproportionately affect women, such as sexual assault, rape and harassment. It is a violation of women’s fundamental rights regarding dignity and equality.

The impact of violence against women is felt beyond those women who are themselves victims as they affect families, friends and society as a whole.[1]

1. International and European context:

Violence against women – especially intimate partner violence and sexual violence – is a major public health problem and a violation of fundamental human rights.

The global estimates published by the World Health Organization indicate that about 1 in 3 (35%) women worldwide have been victims of physical or sexual violence from their intimate partner.

Violence can negatively affect the physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health of women and may increase the risk of getting HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.

The United Nations defines violence against women as “any act of gender-based violence that results in or is likely to result in bodily, sexual or mental injury or suffering to women, including threats with such acts, coercion or deprivation of the arbitrary freedom, either in public life or in private life. “

Intimate partner violence refers to the behavior of an intimate partner or a former partner that causes physical, sexual or psychological harm, including physical aggression, sexual coercion, psychological abuse, and control behaviors.

Sexual violence is “any sexual intercourse, the attempt to obtain a sexual act, or any other act directed against a person’s sexuality by coercion, by any person, regardless of the relationship with the victim, in any event.” Includes rape, defined as forced penetration or under coercion of the vagina or anus with a penis, another part of the body or an object. “

Almost a third (30%) of women who have had a relationship have been victims of physical and/or sexual violence from their intimate partner. The World Health Organization’s estimates of the prevalence of intimate violence range from 23.2% in high income countries, 24.6% in the West Pacific region to 37% in the Mediterranean region and 37.7% in the South- East.

Globally, 38% of all crimes in which women are victims are committed by intimate partners.

 In addition to the violence of the intimate partner, globally, 7% of women reported that they were sexually assaulted by someone other than a partner, although data on non-partner sexual violence is more limited. Sexual violence is mostly committed by men against women, and according to international studies, men are more prone to violence, being generally the “aggressors” in statistics.

1. Consequences on health:

The intimate (physical, sexual and emotional) partner and sexual violence cause serious physical, mental, sexual and reproductive health problems in the short and long term for women. They also affect their children and lead to high social and economic costs for women, families and society. Such violence can:

• Have fatal results such as homicide or suicide.
• Lead to wounds, 42% of women who experience intimate partner violence reported a physical injury.
• Lead to unintended pregnancies, induced abortions, gynecological problems, and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. The World Health Organization’s 2013 analysis found that women who were physically or sexually abused had 1.5 times more chances of having sexually transmitted infection and, in some regions, HIV, compared to women who have not experienced partner violence. They are also twice as likely to have an abortion.
• Aggressive partner violence during pregnancy also increases the likelihood of spontaneous abortion, intrauterine fetal death, premature birth, and low birth weight babies. The same study in 2013 showed that women victims of domestic violence had 16% more chances to suffer a spontaneous abortion and 41% more likely to have premature birth.
• These forms of violence can lead to depression, post-traumatic stress and other anxiety disorders, sleeping difficulties, eating disorders and suicide attempts.
• Female victims of domestic violence are twice as prone to depression.
• Health effects can also include headaches, back pain, abdominal pain, gastrointestinal disturbances, limited mobility, and low overall health.
• Sexual violence, especially during childhood, can increase the consumption of alcohol and drugs and risky sexual behaviors in later life. It is also associated with the perpetuation of violence (for men) and victimization (for women).

1. Impact on children:

Violence can have immediate and/or long-term consequences on child health, development and well-being. In the long run, the consequences also affect adult life, being reflected by the difficulty of developing or maintaining intimate relationships with the opposite sex or even social relationships in general, finding a stable job, having attitudes and skills required for a good parent.

Not only the act of violence itself has consequences, but also the context in which it occurs. Usually there is an interaction between several risk factors that lead to the occurrence of consequences and increase of impact. Repeated interviewing/hearing of the child after the discovery of the act of violence can also revictimise the child.

The consequences are reflected in the development of the child both affectionally, as well as in other aspects of development and school adaptation.

• Affective: atypical (disorganized) attachment, emotional deficiencies, negative emotionality, aggressiveness, low self-esteem, suicidal tendencies etc.
• On the other aspects of development: growth retardation, delays in motor, cognitive and language development, reduced social skills, etc.
• On the level of school adaptation: low school performance, learning difficulties, school dropout.[2]

Consequences of physical abuse

Physical abuse can have physical and neurological consequences and can lead to illness, fracture, disability, and even death. It also frequently leads to aggressive behaviors, emotional and behavioral problems, and learning difficulties and diminishing school performance. The context in which physical abuse occurs may be in the family, various institutions (eg school, re-education center, placement center), in the community (eg on the street) and even in society.

Consequences of emotional abuse

Strong emotional abuse has, in particular, long-term consequences on child development, mental health, behavior and self-esteem. Contexts of this type of abuse are typically those related to domestic / family violence, adults with mental health problems, and parents with low parental abilities.

Consequences of sexual abuse

Sexual abuse is often recognized by self-aggression, depression, loss of self-esteem, and sexual behaviour inappropriate to the age of the child. The severity of the impact is even greater as the abuse has a longer duration and intensity, the higher the child’s age, if there is a component of premeditation, threats, coercion, sadism, etc. In the case of sexual abuse, once the child has recognized and revealed it, it is vital to have an adult, especially a protective parent or caregiver, in which the child has confidence and can help him cope with this dramatic experience and understand what happened to him, giving him support and protection.

At the level of the European Union, Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) published the first comprehensive study on intimate partner violence in 2014. A study in 28 Member States revealed that the prevalent forms of violence from the intimate partner are physical and sexual violence.

According to the Fundamental Rights Agency study, at EU level:

• 1 out of 3 women (33%) have suffered from physical and / or sexual violence since the age of 15.
• 22% of women who have or have had a relationship have been victims of physical and / or sexual violence since the age of 15.
• 16% of women victims of physical violence from their intimate partner continued to be abused after the relationship ended.
• 42% of pregnant women during the relationship were victims of some form of violence.
• 22% of women have been victims of violence from someone other than their intimate partner since the age of 15.[3]

1. Economic impact:

Romania ranks 7th in the European top of spending due to discrimination and violence according to the European Institute for Gender Equality (IEEG) report 2015, which estimates that the European Union has economic costs of 380, 9 billion euros annually to combat domestic violence and gender.

The total of € 380.9 billion is divided between costs with combating domestic violence against women (€ 109.1 billion), costs with combating domestic violence against children and men (€ 13.1 billion) and costs with combating gender violence (€ 258,7 billion).

The first places are: Germany – € 60.7 billion, France – € 49.5 billion, UK – € 48 billion, Italy – € 45 billion, Spain – € 35.5 billion, Poland – € 29.5 billion, Romania – € 15.3 billion.

In Romania, the total cost of € 15.3 billion is divided between costs with combating domestic violence against women (€ 4.3 billion), costs with combating violence against children and men (€ 0.5 billion) and costs with combating gender violence (€ 10.3 billion).

The announced amounts take into account the expenses due to the loss of work productivity related to workplace absences or the days when the victim was unable to carry out normal activities, as well as the money lost by the employee and the employer, the health expenses, the acts of justice, social assistance expenses and related expenses, including those related to emotional and psychological counseling.

Practically, Romania’s total spending on combating domestic violence and gender represents 9.6% of GDP (6.4% gender violence and 3.2% domestic violence), while at EU level it stands at 2.5 % of GDP (1.7% gender violence and 0.7% domestic violence).

In Romania, domestic violence is among the top 30 causes of death in women, out of a total of 51 cases – phenomenon monitored by the Ministry of Health (M.H.). In the case of men, according to a report by M.H., domestic violence is not a cause of death.

Women earn on average 16% less than men. In the EU in 2015, women earned 16.3% less than men at a comparison of average gross hourly earnings. On average, women have earned less than men in all Member States. However, this pay gap between men and women varies. The largest differences were registered in Estonia (26.9%), Czech Republic (22.5%), Germany (22.0%), Austria (21.7%) and the United Kingdom (20.8%). On the other hand, the smallest differences between men and women in terms of earnings were recorded in Luxembourg and Italy (both 5.5%), Romania (5.8%), Belgium (6.5%) and Poland (7.7%).[4]

1. Background in Romania:

Romania continues to be a traditional society in which expressions such as “the violence is broken from Heaven”, “where mother hits, grows,” “a woman who is not beaten does not feel loved” still present a grim picture of the woman’s condition in society.

The statistical data of the institutions with attributions in the prevention and combating of the phenomenon of domestic violence shows a very small percentage from the true phenomenon and highlights the prevalence of physical violence among the facts notified to the competent authorities.

In March 2017, the Prosecutor’s Office attached to the High Court of Cassation and Justice in its activity report on 2016 states that: “It draws attention the large number of serious crimes committed between family members (murder, rape, hacking or other violence and bodily injury), which necessitates preventive action by authorities and non-governmental organizations. “

The same call was sent by the Prosecutor’s Office in the activity report for 2017.

The statistics obtained by the General Inspectorate of the Romanian Police in connection with the persons and offenses provided by the Law 217/2003 on the prevention and combating of domestic violence reveal that almost half of the criminal offenses reported to the police every year fall under Art. 193 / NCP – “Assault and battery”:

• In 2013, of the total of 23,090 reported criminal offenses, 6,282 fell under art. 193 / NCP;
• In 2014, out of the total of 28,2014 reported criminal offenses, 11,937 fell under art. 193 / NCP;
• In 2015, of the total of 33,317 reported criminal offenses, 15,705 fell under art. 193 / NCP;
• In 2016, of the total of 35,202 crimes perceived, 18,500 fell under art. 193 / NCP;
• In 2017, of the total of 36,245 reported criminal offenses, 20,283 fell under art. 193 / PCN.
• In the first 7 months of 2018, of the total of 22,624 reported criminal offenses, 13,200 fell under art. 193 / PCN.

A large percentage of the population does not know their elementary rights, they do not know where to ask for help, or more seriously, they do not know that what is happening in their home is a crime punishable by law.

Every year, the number of complaints submitted to the police increases as a result of awareness-raising and prevention campaigns implemented at national or local level, but the need for information is a huge one stll, the broadcasting industry having an extremely important role in educating the public.

Annual budget estimates show that Romania invests 9.6% of GDP in combating and preventing gender violence and domestic violence, as services to victims of these crimes are inadequate compared to the other EU Member States that allocate annually 2,5% of GDP on the implementation of coherent public policies capable of effectively managing such situations, putting in the foreground the citizen who is the victim of abuse, the legal resolution of these situations and his social reintegration.

51% of the Romanian population is female and verbal, psychological, physical, sexual, economic, social and spiritual violence continues to represent a daily reality for 1 out of every 4 women living in this country and the fact that every year 30 – 40,000 people ask authorities for help to get out of an abusive relationship, it’s just a drop in the ocean.

Television is an important source of information for the Romanian population, and for the vast majority of citizens it is the only source from which they get the realities up to date.

Public interest messages become common law and to learn that you have rights and that violence is a crime punished by law can have a huge impact on both the health of the population and the increase of the level of safety in the country.

The average time spent by Romanians in front of the television is almost double than the global average.

• Nearly half of those interviewed spend 2-3 hours in front of the TV every day.
• 1 out of 5 Romanians spends 4 to 6 hours daily in front of the TV
• 1 out of 10 Romanians says he watches TV over 8 hours a day.
• The average time spent in front of the TV in Romania is 5.46 hours. The global average is about 3 hours.[5]

Taking into account the magnitude of the phenomenon, the national and international statistical data showing the seriousness of these facts and the extremely important role that television has in the life of the Romanians, we ask you to approve the introduction of a new message of public interest, namely:

“Domestic violence is punishable by imprisonment! Call 112! “

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The phenomenon of domestic violence in numbers:

§  Globally, 38% of all crimes in which women are victims are committed by intimate partners.§   The costs of the lack of integrated services and a structured public policy cost the Romanian state over 9.6% of GDP annually, while at the level of the European Union the average represents 2.5% of the GDP. §  1 out of 4 women are victims of one or more forms of violence from their intimate partner throughout their lives. §  In Romania, domestic violence is among the top 30 causes of death in women (Ministry of Health) §  1 out of 3 women (33%) have been subjected to physical and / or sexual violence since their 15th birthday. §  22% of women who have had or have been in a relationship have been victims of physical and / or sexual violence since the age of 15 years. §  16% of women victims of physical violence from their intimate partner continued to be abused after the relationship ended. §  42% of pregnant women during the relationship were victims of some form of violence. §  22% of women have been victims of violence from people other than the intimate partner since the age of 15. §  One in three of the women around the world were victims of physical or sexual violence in their intimate partner.

Public Interest Message:

“Violence in the family is punishable by imprisonment! Call 112! “