Since 1996, 265 women have died violently in the Republic of Ireland. This year alone there have been 12 cases of femicide.
Violence against women is a major problem in Irish society. Old-style Catholic repression has been replaced with the commodification of women’s bodies.
Instead of tackling the issue properly, the government is refusing to invest in refugees for women who need shelter from domestic violence.
According to the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence, better known as the Istanbul Convention, Ireland needs 512 refugee places.
But there were only 181 places last year.
The far-right have tried to capitalise on fears of domestic violence and femicide. But they are never seen to demand extra refuge places. They pretend that attacks are carried out by strangers who are ‘unvetted men’.
The reality is that nine out of ten women knew their attacker beforehand. 63% were killed in their own homes and 55% were killed by a partner or ex-partner.
On Lá Le Bríde, People Before Profit held a demonstration at the Dáil to highlight the government’s failure to adequately deal with the issue.
