Femicide: Woman killed in Netherlands every eight days, mostly by exes, partners

A woman is killed in the Netherlands every eight days. In 60 percent of the cases, the murder is her partner or ex. After decades of decline, the number of femicides in the country has remained stable in the past decade, Nieuwsuur reports.

This week, 39-year-old Jouweela from Eindhoven was shot dead in Gouda by her ex-husband Driekus K. He tracked her down in the women’s shelter where she was in hiding from him with their two children. He shot her on the street in front of their kids, left the scene, and then committed suicide.

K. was previously convicted of attempting to murder another ex. Last month, he was arrested for weapons possession and assaulting Jouweela. He was released from custody after two weeks.

On Thursday, another woman was killed in a “violent incident” in her home in Vlijmen, Noord-Brabant. The police arrested a 35-year-old man from Uden. The circumstances of this killing are not yet known.

Jouweela had sought protection, which is a big step that many women in abusive relationships don’t dare to take, femicide researcher Marieke Liem told Nieuwsuur. “In many cases of femicide, authorities and the community were unaware of the extent of the problems between the man and the woman.” By the time a woman reports domestic violence to the police, an average of 33 incidents have already occurred, Liem said.

Liem’s research into femicide - murders where the perpetrator’s motive is related to the victim being a woman - has revealed “several important indicators to be aware of,” she told the program. Men who murder their wives and girlfriends typically have a history of threatening to kill themselves or to harm pets or children. Addiction often plays a role. And often, the man wants to control the woman’s behavior “out of fear of losing control or status.”

The descent into this type of domestic abuse usually happens gradually, Liem said. “For example, the man demands a text from his wife every ten minutes, with a photo of the surroundings. That’s a very subtle process. Around 200,000 Dutch people are in this situation of intimate terror. If a woman has mustered the courage and resources to end the relationship, it can end in stalking and sometimes murder.”

According to Liem, the persistently high number of femicides might be linked to the emancipation of women. “Some men respond to this by reclaiming the old status distinction. And if that’s not possible through education or income, it sometimes happens with violence.”

The police and social workers cannot solve the problem of femicides themselves, Liem said. “They’re not capable of tackling this entire phenomenon. The answer lies with us: we need to dare to talk about domestic violence. The taboo has to be broken. And men need to give women the space to develop and attach less importance to status within a relationship.”