Petra Lundh and Prosecutor-General Katarina Johansson Welin called a meeting with chiefs from several authorities to discuss what can be done to improve cooperation against men's violence against women and violence in close relationships.
We are really trying to take steps forward now and in that work, we need to cooperate with other authorities and organizations that also have assignments related to this, says Petra Lundh to TT after the meeting.
Among others, the National Board of Health and Welfare, county administrative boards, the National Agency for Education, the Swedish Prison and Probation Service, and the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions (SALAR) attended the meeting. The discussions centered, among other things, on how authorities can better share information to detect and prevent violence.
Common Interpretation
During the meeting, the police and SALAR agreed to develop a common interpretation of the secrecy legislation to facilitate information exchange.
They also discussed closer cooperation between authorities to identify common risk factors for violence, in order to make the right decisions at the right time. Prosecutor-General Katarina Johansson Welin says that there was "a great commitment" from all parties.
Was your thought also to send a signal to other authorities that this concerns more than you?
The thought was to focus on these parts and that this is an important issue for the entire society, where many can help contribute, says Johansson Welin.
Both the Prosecution Authority and the police report positive results in their annual reports on the work against men's violence against women and violence in close relationships. Among other things, a significant increase in prosecution for crimes in partner relationships is noted. The police's targeted work against potential perpetrators is also considered successful.
At Least 20 Murders
Despite this, deadly violence remains at a high level: at least 20 murders of women last year have been confirmed so far, according to the police's annual report.
We need to work even more intensively with this. It's going in the right direction and this is a step in intensifying that work, says Petra Lundh.
Katarina Johansson Welin says that the work is important from a gender equality perspective, but also affects many children who are harmed and can be affected for a long time to come.
Many of the young perpetrators we have today have themselves been exposed to violence or grown up in families where it occurs. So this is a huge concern.
