Two femicides have occurred in Albania over the last 24 hours.
Yesterday evening, 36-year-old Esmeralda Filopati and her brother Vledison Filopati were murdered by Esmerelda’s ex-husband. The time took place in Kodra Rreshen and the alleged perpetrator is Fatmir Kolecaj. It is alleged that Kolecaj ambushed the pair before an argument broke out that resulted in the murder of the siblings.
Kolecaj had three daughters with his ex-wife who had previously filed charges against him for domestic violence. He had spent ten months in prison during 2017 for the crimes he committed against her. Since then, Esmeralda had a restraining order against her ex-husband but he had failed to comply with it on a regular basis.
This morning in Durres, a 59-year-old Hajdie Tosuni was hit over the head with a metal object inside a shop by her husband, 63-year-old Rruzhdi Tosuni who has confessed to the crime. A video has been published by the media showing one of the couple’s daughter crying out for her mother in the street following the incident.
The murder of Esmeralda is yet another example of femicide committed by a perpetrator who had a court protection order against him. This demonstrates a recurring failure of the police and state structures to protect women in cases of domestic and intimate partner violence.
Graffiti has already sprung up around Tirana with the slogan “Daddy please don’t kill Mummy” written in the Albanian language.
