Ombudswoman Tena Šimonović Einwalter organised a working meeting on 30 September 2026 with civil society organisations working with older persons and the authorities responsible for combating domestic violence against older persons.

The aim of the meeting was to strengthen the response to the problem of underreporting of violence and to improve activities aimed at empowering older persons to report it. There are numerous reasons why violence goes unreported, including feelings of shame associated with experiencing violence, lack of access to information about available support, fear of the consequences, but also the tendency to downplay violence when it is regarded as a “private” or “family” matter, as well as the failure to recognise forms of violence that are not physical.

The Ombudswoman has also repeatedly drawn attention to the problem of underreporting in her annual reports to the Croatian Parliament and in her special report on the rights of older persons in Croatia. These reports also contain recommendations aimed at strengthening the protection of older persons from violence, one of which specifically concerns cooperation between the competent authorities and civil society organisations.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the civil society organisations Pragma, Civil Rights Project Sisak, Val Lastovo, the Legal Information Centre Slavonski Brod, the humanitarian association Duga Vukovar and Caritas Croatia, as well as representatives of the Ministry of Labour, Pension System, Family and Social Policy, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of the Interior and the General Police Directorate, the Croatian Institute for Social Work, the Social Welfare Academy and the Family Centre.