The highly anticipated trial of the perpetrator of a femicide that shocked the country begins

The murder of Giulia Cecchettin particularly shocked Italian society at the end of 2023. At the call of the victim’s sister, young people rose up in highly publicized demonstrations, and the father called for an awakening of the whole of Italian society.

In Italy, as in France, a woman is killed every three days, according to official figures. At the end of 2023, a femicide accelerated awareness of violence against women. Monday, September 23, 2024, at Venice, one of the most anticipated trials of the year opens, that of Filippo Turettan. He appears for the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Giulia Cecchettin.

On November 11, 2023, Giulia Cecchettin, a biomedical student in Padua, in the Venice region, goes missing. Her body will be found a week later, bearing dozens of stab wounds. Her ex-boyfriend will confess to having killed her. She wanted to end their relationship, he couldn’t stand it.

What struck the population was the youth and apparent “normality” of the victim and the alleged killer. They were both 22 years old, well integrated and had no previous history. In fact, while everyone could easily identify with them, the young woman’s family intervened to say that this case concerned all of society.

While these crimes are often followed by a minute of silence, Giulia’s sister Elena had launched an appeal to young people, urging them to express their anger by “making noise”In high schools and universities, this slogan “Make some noise” had led to highly publicized demonstrations. As for the father, during Giulia’s funeral, he had appealed to the men: “Let’s talk to other men we know, we should all be involved, spread a sense of responsibility, listen to women without turning our heads at the signs of violence, even the slightest.”

“Our individual actions are crucial to breaking the cycle of violence and creating a culture of responsibility and mutual aid.”

Giulia Cecchetin’s father

statement on the day of the funeral

Since the murder, Ariana Gentili of the association “Differenza Donna” has noted an increase in the use of the national emergency number against violence against women. According to her, November 11, 2023 marked a tipping point: “We reached 950 calls per day, compared to 150 previously. This figure remained very high in November and December, and the phenomenon has become structural. Since January, we are still receiving twice as many calls as last year at the same time.”

After Giulia’s death, the law was amended to speed up the treatment of women victims and the justice system against their attackers. According to Differenza Donna, there is improvement in the first part, the second is difficult to assess.