Challenging Fascism: The Reality of Violence Against Women in Ireland

Vigil in Cork to remember Ashling Murphy

November 25th is International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. In this article, Jess Dalton looks at the current context of violence against women and children in Ireland, arguing against the far-right’s efforts to utilise this issue to further their conservative, authoritarian politics and pushing back against progressive change.

Today on International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, I felt the need to open dialogue and discuss the violence women in Ireland face. Following the shocking attack that took place on Parnell Street in Dublin just two days ago, where 3 children and a female creche worker were injured in a knife attack, a riot broke out in Dublin. This terrible tragedy should have been an opportunity for discussion about the very serious issues we have in Ireland with violence against women and children, instead it has been weaponised by far-right fearmongers to whip up racism and division.

The truth is that violence against women and children is an everyday epidemic in Ireland - with domestic abuse helplines receiving hundreds of domestic abuse reports everyday. This is an issue that can affect any of us, and is one that the far right do not care about, unless they can spin it for their own political and financial gain. But it is a reality the socialist and feminist left must take seriously, analyse and address.

When discussing femicide or violence against women and children, it is important to remember that 87% of women killed in Ireland have been murdered by a man known to them, with 1 in every 2 femicide victims killed by a current or former male partner. The far right would have you believe that every femicide case in Ireland is directly related to an ‘unvetted migrant’, but this simply is not true. It is clear that the far right do not truly care about the extent of violence experienced by women and children in Ireland, as they pick and choose when to discuss the issue depending on the skin colour of the assailant and victim. Their attempts to stoke the flames of fear and hatred against migrants and people of colour in Ireland are obvious, and must be challenged. In order to tackle violence against women and children, we must tackle all violence against women and children. We cannot concede to any efforts made to turn violence against women into a race or class issue, as this is an epidemic experienced by women and children everywhere.

The Everyday Epidemic

Following the murders of 12 women within the Republic of Ireland last year, 2022 was dubbed the deadliest year of the decade for women and children in Ireland. The people of Ireland were left devastated by the shocking news that Tullamore teacher, Ashling Murphy, had been murdered on January 12th, 2022. Feminist organisations across the country mobilised due to this tragic death, holding vigils in solidarity to pay their respect to the memories of women who have died due to the rise of femicide in Ireland. With 2023 soon coming to an end, it is clear that nothing has changed in the year since. The Irish government and policymakers continue to fail to make any meaningful change in tackling gender-based violence and femicide, leading to more deaths.

In 2023 alone, a further 8 women have had their lives taken from them, 7 of which had their lives taken by men known to them. This fact is not in any way surprising, as it has been widely reported and proven that women and girls are more likely to be murdered by men they know, rather than those unknown to them. On average, more than 133 women and girls are killed everyday worldwide by a partner or member of their family.

As attempts were made to welcome the New Year in 2023, news broke early on January 1st of 2023 that Bruna Fonseca had been violently murdered by a man she knew. Within every year, month, day, and second, women are forced to mourn the loss of their friends and family, as little is done to tackle femicide in Ireland.

In January of 2022, I organised a vigil to remember women whose lives had been taken in Ireland due to gender-based violence. Following the murder of Ashling Murphy, I felt a sense of hopelessness. I wanted to do something that would give people the safe space that they needed to mourn this loss, as well as the many other women taken from us before this. It was only when I started to research the names, faces, and causes of death of every woman in Ireland lost due to gender-based violence before Ashling Murphy, that I realised just how large the scale of femicide in Ireland is. 

After organising the vigil to spread awareness of this issue, I was struck by a message from an attendee, who reached out to share the importance of organising against gender-based violence, as they shared that their mother could have been yet another person lost to us due to femicide. This sense of hopelessness and fear is something that every woman in Ireland felt.

The way in which the State fails to protect us is adding to the violence experienced by us, as reports of domestic violence continue to rise. Our Government, and society in general, must take action to put an end to the senseless violence and death women and children are exposed to. 

“Zero Tolerance”

Prompted by increasing cases of femicide and national outrage, the Irish Government published an ambitious ‘Zero Tolerance’ Third National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual, and Gender-Based Violence (DSGBV) in 2022. The end goal within the strategy is clear, that a zero tolerance approach be taken in Irish society towards GSGBV. The strategy succeeded in recognising how members of the LGBTQ+, migrant, and Travelling community are disproportionately affected by DSGBV. However, since publishing the strategy, the government has failed to enact any meaningful action to safeguard women and children, as well as members of vulnerable communities. We have a government that promises the world, and yet cannot even deliver awomen's refugee centre in each county. Campaigners in Carlow were left disgusted this year after promises to build a women’s refuge by 2024 were dashed. Campaigner for the centre, Ger O’Neill stated, “Women and children cannot wait. Last year was the worst year on record for violence against women, while 62% of the requests for refuge went unmet in 2021”.

The increased violence experienced by women and children in Ireland has been used as a tool by the far-right as a means of furthering their hatred for immigrants and people of colour within Ireland. Instead of helping to eradicate the misogynistic attitudes in society that have enabled such crimes to exist, they have utilised people’s suffering to spread fear, hatred, and racism. The death of Ashling Murphy rocked the nation, and unfortunately fueled the far-right. A year prior to Murphy’s death, Urantsetseq Tserendorj was violently stabbed to death by an Irish teenager. Her death was not a cause for riot from the far-right, who decided against claiming her as ‘theirs’. Earlier this year, when Geila Ibram was murdered in Limerick, she too received little attention as they did not want to mourn the death of the Romanian native.
The conversation of stopping all violence against women and children has been hijacked by the far-right, who instead insist on wanting to ‘protect’ Irish women and children, ignoring the deaths of non-Irish women whose lives have been lost here, sometimes at the hands of Irish men. The most important fact missing from any conversation the far-right have held on ‘protecting our own’, is that GBV is the result of misogyny. Built in a capitalist society that caters to powerful men - it is women, children, and members of minority groups who are the most affected. Since 1996, 264 women in Ireland have died violently at the hands of men. The issue of femicide and GBV is not one caused by migrants, but one that is caused by a sick society that views women as lesser than men, we are mere subordinates who will be dealt with violently if they do not submit.

Tackling Femicide

In June of 2021, an internal investigation revealed that more than 3,000 domestic violence 999 calls were “cancelled” by the Garda. In 2022, the Government published their hopeful DSGBV Strategy. As we approach the end of 2023, how much can we realistically say has improved for victims of gender-based violence? The lack of action taken to tackle gender-based violence and the rise of femicide, and how the Government willingly allows the far-right to utilise the attacks on women and children to further their own hatred, has done nothing to decrease violence against women and children.

Nothing has changed for some of society's most vulnerable, as those in power refuse to change the systematic gender inequality that we live in. Attempts to educate children on the importance of consent, and their identity, were met by the far-right burning books and harassing library workers. When non-Irish women are killed, it is other women who mourn their deaths. When Irish women are killed by their spouse or other Irish men, we mourn their loss and demand change. When Irish women are killed by non-Irish men, we must yet again mourn them, and fight any attempts by the far-right to use it as a tool to harass migrants, ignoring the true cause of femicide.

Femicide is a symptom of patriarchal norms and gender inequality, born from societies acceptance and lack of action on gender-based violence. Femicide is not caused by the colour of someone’s skin, their employment status, or religion.  No one policy can reform a broken system, a system of capitalism from which violence against women has been born from, but there are important reforms we should fight for.

The current housing and cost of living crisis is only serving to further exacerbate an already dire situation for many victims of domestic abuse, who fear homelessness. As mentioned above, the implementation of a women’s refuge in each country is something which is in dire need. A promise made, and then broken, the protection of victims of abuse must be at the forefront of government policy. We must demand proper investment in housing and social welfare, to prevent vulnerable women and children who fear homelessness being financially trapped by their abuser. We need to continue our fight to ensure that children receive proper sexual education that is in line with the current needs of adolescents. 

In order to tackle gender-based violence, we must also tackle the patriarchy which undervalues women. Societal norms that allow for such violence to thrive must be challenged at every turn, and the existing capitalist system with its entrenched patriarchal hierarchy and oppression cannot be reformed, as it is itself the root cause of such attacks. In order to achieve gender-equality and to stop gender-based violence, we must tear this system down.