The Malta Women's Lobby has objected to the observation made by the Police that in the case of Paulina Dembska no particular gender was targeted.
“This raises serious questions on the lack of knowledge and sheer lack of sensitivity around the issue of violence against women on the part of the Police,” the lobby group said in a statement.
“The fact that the victim was violently raped is in itself a clear indicator that she was targeted because she was a woman,” they continued.
The group said that the Police's statement that no gender was targeted, implies that if a man happened to be feeding the cats on the day instead of the victim, he too risked being violently raped, strangled and murdered because he randomly happened to be there.
“If the police are unable to see violence against women for what it really is, how can women feel protected in this country?,” the group concluded.
Their statement came after the police yesterday said that Paulina Dembska’s murder was a random attack, and that she was not targeted because of her gender.
20-year-old Abner Aquilina was charged with the Polish national’s rape and murder on Thursday evening. He has pleaded not guilty.