We have just entered 2022 and the bitter experience of femicides in Greece and worldwide in 2021, has filled our very existence, as women. We try to understand what went wrong, we speculate, we talk about the "blockades" of the pandemic and how much they may have contributed to the crimes committed, but the answers are not easy. I will try today to give some ways of research on the subject, but the conclusions are yours, as well as your responsibility towards the "other" woman, friend, relative or stranger - it does not matter - for your participation in her possible rescue . Nine out of ten times, as we see from the testimonies, everyone knew something about the perpetrator, but NO ONE helped the victim.
According to a Guardian article, which you can read here: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2021/oct/02/the-81-women-killed-in-28-weeks in the UK alone in just 28 (!!!) weeks 81 women lost their lives. Unfortunately, they are believed to have been killed by men, whether they knew them or not. Here, however, we will deal with the murders committed by partners or spouses, or ex-spouses, because the phenomenon that "hit" Greece also outlines them.
Here are just a few facts about the global homicide picture for 2020:
47,000 women were killed worldwide by their partner, or husband, or relative
18,600 women were killed in Asia
80% of the perpetrators of all murders worldwide were men or boys
In the majority, the pandemic seems to affect homicides more in Western Europe than in Eastern Europe, while North America has the largest increase compared to the East.
most of the women were killed with guns in their homes
For the years 2019-2020 we had 39 murders of women in Greece, while in 2021, 17 similar tragic incidents shocked the whole of Greece, with the murder of a young girl in Glyka Nera, stirring up a storm of reactions and journalists trying to analyze his psychological profile. perpetrator of her spouse, in a way that is anything but appropriate to the seriousness of such a situation. The vast majority of the perpetrators acted in the heat of the moment, as they themselves admit, stating that they were either abandoned by their wives, which they never accepted, or because they simply came to a rift with verbal confrontations that nevertheless ended in crime.
Many views converge on the fact that women are treated as "inferior" from the opposite sex and also cite murders of a purely racist nature. Still others curse pandemic cohabitation, where problems have emerged in previously undetected couples. Homicide scientists, however, seem confused. The conclusions may not be accurate, they say.
Describing men belonging to this category, scholars Rebecca and Russell Dobash explain: "Many were problematic as children and adults, others had problems with alcohol and were unemployed. But there was a percentage who had no convictions or problems with alcohol and were employed regularly. It was found that in 62 cases there was also collateral, where children "'Protectors', such as friends, relatives, new partners or spouses, would be killed - a sign of how possessive these men would become towards their victim."
Christos Liapis, psychiatrist, doctor of the University of Athens and president of KETHEA claims that the perpetrators of such crimes are manipulative people, who at the core of their personality there is insecurity, which they want to cover by manipulating others, without interfering with healthy behavior. every human relationship, in healthy retreat and interdependence. "Their main feature," he points out, "is the problem of developing relationships with other people, which at its core hides a problem with themselves."
Walking on a very dark path, that leads into the psyche of a woman killer, who may well be a potential perpetrator of mass murders based on studies, can we be led to the enigmatic gene of the warrior, or "warrior gene", or Monoamine oxidase A gene (MAOA); The monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene has earned the nickname "warrior gene" (no, the title is not honorable) because it has been linked to aggression in observational and research studies. However, no controlled experimental study has tested whether the warrior gene actually leads to behavioral manifestations of these tendencies. Monoamine oxidase A is an enzyme that breaks down important neurotransmitters in the brain, including dopamine (lack of it causes Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia and attention deficit syndrome), norepinephrine (suppresses shock) and serotonin (lack of it leads to depression). The enzyme is regulated by the monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene. Humans have different forms of the gene, resulting in different levels of enzyme activity. Individuals in the form of low activity (MAOA-L) produce less than the enzyme, while the form of high activity (MAOA-H) produces more than the enzyme. Several studies have found an association between the low form of MAOA activity and aggression in observational and research studies. Only about a third of the people in the western population have the form of low MAOA activity. By comparison, low-activity MAOAs have been reported to be much more common (approaching two-thirds of people) in some populations with a history of war. This led to a controversy over the designation of the MAOA as a "warrior gene". In this video from the BBC, you will find some very interesting facts about this strange gene: https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p09syvpv/can-the-warrior-gene-make-you-violent-
Apparently, homicide scientists themselves are struggling to explain a criminal's motives and for this reason, and in the absence of thorough studies and safe conclusions, find it difficult to talk about genetic inheritance and talk about possessiveness and lack of empathy, factors however, that do not necessarily lead to the formation of criminal personalities. There may be a plethora of factors that could lead to female homicide, and here there may be possible sexual harassment of the man within his own family (see Wilhelm Reich). https://orgonomy.org.gr/index.php/orgonomia/koinoniki-orgonomia/oi-theories-tou-vilxelm-raix-gia-ti-seksoualikotita )
The biggest question here is how to limit the action of these troubled people in order to reduce crime against women. In practice, would this mean that every woman who knows a man should undergo psychoanalysis, or look for his family tree and genes? Such a thing is inapplicable and at the beginning of the relationship not even debatable. The "monster" can sleep for years, curled up in the sanctuaries of the soul of a future female killer. Unfortunately, he manifests himself after his heinous acts. It seems that the only thing a woman can do is to observe the behavior and action of her partner, or husband, especially under stressful conditions, and if she sees repeated violence, even on a small scale, (verbal attacks, display of force on objects, etc.) to move away. I can not believe that a future criminal does not give a few early signs of his aggression. We used to justify people and situations because of socio-economic conditions, but we have risked and thus we are endangering human lives. The state should be more aware and take more drastic measures when it receives warnings from women at risk and involve the police in the effort to combat homicide with special training. The internet and social media can be used - finally - more drastically for this purpose. Relatives and friends could also help, not by hiding facts due to the "social outcry", but by revealing them to a wider circle. The more prepared we are, the safer we become. And above all, women need to start talking about what is happening to them. To react, not in a way that can increase the aggression of the male, at the risk of losing their mental and physical health, but through complaints and recourse to legal means. Otherwise, what is the necessity of their existence ???
The maximum duty of the state also, which must assist in the work of combating genocide, is the investigation, information and moreover the exemplary punishment of the perpetrators, in order to restrain their confidence in a "flexible justice" that will allow them to get out of jail in no time at all, so that they can do the same to their next victims. Finally, it is unacceptable in our time to justify - in some ways - women killers, using terms such as "crime of passion", "crime of jealousy" and "crime of love", because in this way we promote the continuation and not the suppression of their crimes.
Links
https://www.star.gr/eidiseis/ellada/557888/gynaikoktonia-ellada-2021-ta-17-egklhmata-poy-sygklonisan