A silent mass will be held at 34. The first time in Zagreb, on Saturday, at 8:30 a.m., at Ban Jelačić Square. This collective intervention in public space by artist Arijana Lekić-Fridrih is dedicated to the nine women who were victims of femicide in Croatia this year – murders that could have been prevented. In just the first eight months of 2025, nine women were murdered – nine lives cut short due to the systematic inefficiency of institutions, failure to implement the law and lack of political will. One woman is a victim of femicide every month. Despite changes in the law and declarative strategies, real protection is lacking.
Silent mass is held in response to regular gatherings of men who, under the guise of praying the rosary, promote messages that deny women equality and violate their constitutionally guaranteed rights. At the same time, while symbolically calling for submission and the “return of order,” the number of murdered women is inexorably increasing.
This Silent Mass is also dedicated to the rise of nationalism, of which the alleged prayer of the rosary in city squares across Croatia is just one symptom. The Silent Mass is not just a performance – it is a call to responsibility. To the responsibility of those politicians who remain silent while women lose their lives. To the responsibility of county, city and municipal authorities who have the tools to act, but do not use them. And to the responsibility of us – citizens – to reject the messages that push women into silence, subservience and danger.
In a society where men are already gathering in 25 Croatian cities in an organized and financed way to “pray the rosary”, fence off public spaces without permits, and segregate access based on gender and against the Constitution, our task is clear: to remind that a woman’s place is wherever she wants it – in life, in public spaces, and in the law.
We also emphasize that we did not follow the instructions of the HDLU. issued this month, nor do we plan to, because we consider them equally dangerous and cowardly. We remind you that an attack on artists and members of the media is a path towards totalitarianism, but also that a vocal minority cannot intimidate us as it did with the Government of the Republic of Croatia. The absence of an unequivocal reaction is a kind of unequivocal reaction in itself – but one that rolls over the backs of women, journalists, artists and freedom of speech, expression and creation.
We are still waiting for a decisive reaction from the government and the opposition, because ignoring such gatherings means participating in the normalization of discrimination.
Our message is clear: women in this society must be protected – both from domestic violence and from the normalized discriminatory messages that come from “prayer.” The state still does not have strong enough mechanisms for this, and until it develops them, the responsibility remains with us to remind them of this and to demand them.
We invite all citizens to join us. 34. Silent mass and initiatives in their cities and towns, and to jointly express support for victims and solidarity in the fight for a society without violence.
