ZAGREB, 28 January 2021 - Over 30 sexual harassment cases, more than are reported in a year, have come to light in Croatia recently as victims of sexual abuse, rape and harassment have begun sharing their painful experiences as part of the regional Me Too movement.
Ever since Serbian actress Milena Radulović publicly said she was raped by her acting professor Miroslav Aleksić, anonymous testimonies from victims of sexual violence are spreading on social media as part of the "I didn't ask for it" and "You are not alone" initiatives. Many have shared their experiences of sexual harassment, including rape, by stating their full names.
The "I didn't ask for it" Facebook page was launched by four former Sarajevo Academy of Dramatic Art students - Ana Tikvić, Nadine Mičić, Asja Krsmanović and Matea Mavrak.
Mičić has told Hina the decision to create a platform for anonymously sharing such traumatic experiences came after Radulović's testimony.
Shocking numbers, time for red alert
She says that a week ago they "naively thought this isn't widespread in such numbers," yet their page has brought together 40,000 people who, she adds, have the same goal, to read something that reminds them of their story and go public with it.
"What we see, and what its perfectly clear to the public too, is that the numbers are shocking," Mičić says, adding that 1,200 posts were made in one day alone.
Although only a week has gone by since the page was created, Mičić says the testimonies from persons in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Croatia "must raise the red alert" in everyone.
"It's unbelievable what persons who experienced sexual abuse, rape, harassment go through and how many women thought some things would just pass," she says, adding that there is evidently an error in the system and appealing for changing the system.
Sexual harassment complaints still coming
In Croatia, the regional Me Too movement has also launched a wave of complaints of sexual harassment in educational institutions and the workplace.
The Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb has received 27 complaints of sexual harassment and molestation, while two professors at Zagreb's Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences and Faculty of Veterinary Medicine have been suspended.
Earlier this week the border police commissioner in Gruda, Matko Klarić, was fired for sexually harassing his female subordinates.
According to Interior Ministry statistics, 35 sexual harassment cases were registered in 2019 and 30 in 2018.
Gender Equality Ombudsperson Višnja Ljubičić says over 30 cases of harassment are publicly registered. "We still don't have the exact data for the past week with regard to sexual harassment complaints. The complaints are still coming," she has told Hina.
