Delete
The head of the demonstration in Malaga city centre on Monday evening.
More than 4,000 protesters "give voices to murdered women" in  Malaga march

More than 4,000 protesters "give voices to murdered women" in Malaga march

The demonstration to mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women called for an end to the abuse that has killed 1,028 women in Spain since 2003

ANA PÉREZ-BRYAN / IVÁN GELIBTER

Friday, 29 November 2019, 09:38

Compartir

The first woman to be officially counted as a fatal victim of domestic or gender violence, after the statistic was introduced in 2003, was Yaneth Vargas. Her partner killed her in Fuengirola on 7 January 2003. Since then more than a thousand women have increased the cold statistic behind which are more than a thousand stories. The most recent is a 26 year old who was murdered on Monday in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. We don't know her name yet, but she is already number 1,028.

"Just the night before this day - we really have something to celebrate," said one angry protester, a purple scarf around her neck, at the head of Monday's march in Malaga to mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, organised by the Violencia Cero platform. Along with her companions she was clinging on to a long list with the names of each and every one of the women killed by their partners or ex-partners, some of them with their children.

According to the National Police, around 4,000 people, joined the protest in the city centre. "We are the voices of the murdered women!" shouted the protesters at the head of the march before they set off from the Plaza de la Merced.

Once again the colour purple was predominant, as it was during the 8 March women's day rally. Led by numerous protesters carrying megaphones, the slogans chanted during the march included, "If they touch one of us, they touch all of us," "Don't just look, join in," "They're not killed, they're murdered," and "It's not an isolated case; it's called patriarchy."

Political presence

As well as the many anonymous protesters, the march was joined by members of unions, social organisations and associations for the defence of women's rights. Political parties were also represented, among them the mayor of Malaga, Francisco de la Torre, and several city councillors from the conservative Partido Popular; members of the socialist PSOE opposition; centrist Ciudadanos; and left-wing Adelante Málaga.

Far right group Vox were not there, nor were they expected, due to the party's refusal to acknowledge the Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Representatives of Vox had earlier gathered in the city to condemn "all types of violence".

The manifesto read out on Monday evening during the protest stated: "In the face of extremist discourse we say that we're not prepared to take even one step backwards in terms of our rights."

Roses

Earlier on Monday representatives of the regional, provincial and municipal authorities gathered at the monument to victims of violence against women in the city's central park.

Four rose bushes were planted in memory of the women killed by their partners or former partners in the province of Malaga this year.

Reporta un error en esta noticia

* Campos obligatorios