Protest in North Macedonia against the “Javna soba” Telegram group for nude photos [Photo gallery]

Photo: Arbnora Memeti

“Javna soba is a crime act,” “The state that oppresses is a state that rapes,” “It is not your fault,” were some of the slogans that were chanted during yesterday’s protest about the Javna soba group on Telegram, where men criminally distributed nude photos of girls and women mostly from North Macedonia.

The protest started in front of the Interior Ministry’s premises. From there, the protesters headed towards the Public Prosecutor’s Office where they requested from the institutions that all the perpetrators be sanctioned; support for the victims, but also inclusion of the sexual harassments into the legislation.

“Javna soba is proof that violence against women has an institutional form and it is implemented by the institutions by the silence. The violence against women is not a personal problem of any every woman, but your obligation. We don’t need promises and assurances. We need sanctioning of the perpetrators and justice and support for the victims. We demand that you fulfill your obligations for which you receive salaries every month, we demand that you act in accordance with the law, and not in accordance with personal convictions, instigated by nepotism and corruption. Sanction every police officer that will not act in accordance with the law, who will accuse the victim or himself will abuse a woman,” stressed Dragana Drndarevska from the Margini Coalition.

She stressed that the announced legal changes are welcome, but are arriving late and aren’t substantially necessary for the perpetrators from the Javna soba Telegram group to be sanctioned, since in accordance with the Crime Code, the Javna soba case is a felony.

At Public Prosecutor’s Office, where the protest ended, there were chants such as: “The institution that isn’t sanctioning is an institution that rapes,” “Wake up PP,” and attorney Marta Gusar, who represents women who were victims of violence, also addressed the protesters.

“The Javna soba group isn’t entertainment, but a felony. In order to make the entertainment “better” for these perpetrators, I appeal to all future victims that will be facing this type of harassment to keep the telephone numbers and together with a print screen of the talks in various applications to report them to the nearest police station,” said Gusar, who said that she was also a victim of Public Room Group.

The lates information received from the institutions is that the Interior Ministry has detained four persons that were part of the Javna soba group, and the investigation is underway.