In solidarity with the “Not One More” protest due to the latest femicide resulting in killing of Rosica Koceva from Veles, killed by her former partner together with her father, photographer Vančo Džambaski published a photo gallery with 337 photos from the event in Skopje, which are free to download and republish.
The protest began on September 18 in front of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Republic of North Macedonia at 5:30 p.m. and continued with a blockade of “11 October” Blvd. in front of the “Woman Fighter” park and the Parliament.
Group of civil society organizations called for a protest against the collective collapse of the system and the ignoring attitude of the authorities, the police, the prosecution and the courts that allow impunity for continuous violence against women, leading to femicide, despite reporting and calls for help and protection.
Femicide preceded by serious intimate violence by partner or domestic violence has been increasing over the years. The latest case is further evidence of the price paid by women and their loved ones, and thus by society as a whole, when the police, prosecutors, courts and social work centers fail to act in accordance with protection protocols and laws.
According to available data, in the last five years alone, at least 20 women have been killed as a culmination of repeated episodes of gender-based violence in North Macedonia. In such an environment, every woman currently facing harassment, violence, threats and/or stalking runs the risk of becoming a victim of femicide, as institutions do not act in a timely manner in her best interests and protection.
The latest case from Veles shows that the legal framework is not enough without effective implementation, appropriate protocols and accountability of institutions, combined with support from the community.
Photo activism offers an opportunity for citizens who would like to express their support by sharing photos, videos or links to events they could not attend in person.
Thus, the photos from the gallery “Not One More!” can be used free of charge by both commercial and non-commercial media, as well as by individuals on social networks, under the sole condition that the name of the author is indicated when publishing, and if possible, a link to the source.
After the photo gallery was published, citizens who participated in the protest or could not be present, but sympathize with the victims, shared the link or individual images.
This type of activism also supports the work of non-profit, small and local media, which are unable to send photojournalists to public events due to limited financial and human resources.
By publishing photos that are free to use, they also help avoid the risk of lawsuits from commercial photographers and photo agencies, whose photos published on the Internet can be downloaded without permission. Downloading without permission exposes the media to lawsuits, because unless it is clearly indicated that they can be used, it is understood that photos “from the Internet” are protected under the Law on Copyright and Related Rights.
Publishing photos as free for download is done through use of Creative Commons licenses, as in the case of Džambaski, or other licenses such as GNU, or by placing them in the Public Domain. One important global resource that consistently uses such licenses is Wikipedia.
