Filenews 13 January 2026
Reports of domestic violence to the Police were increased in 2025, according to Evi Nikolaou, Head of the Sub-Directorate for the Management of Cases of Vulnerable Persons and the Police Handling of Domestic Violence and Juvenile Abuse Branch. Ms. Nikolaou also said that since July 2025, when the panic button worked, 244 users have registered in the digital application, following complaints submitted to the Police, while 14 people have used it to call the Police.
Ms. Nikolaou expressed satisfaction with the fact that since 2021, when provincial teams were formed to handle cases of domestic violence, the number of complaints has increased, which demonstrates, as she said, that complainants trust the procedures and feel that they can turn to the competent authorities.
Answering a question about the number of complaints in 2025, Ms. Nikolaou stated that since 2021 they have averaged 3000 incidents each year, but in 2025 they were increased, although they did not reach 4000. She underlined that the cooperation of the Police with the Social Welfare Services, SPAVO, which is responsible for victim shelters, but also with the Woman's House in Nicosia, for the all-round support of the victims, is particularly important.
Besides, from the moment the panic button was put into operation, Ms. Nicolaou stated that it was pressed by a total of 14 people from the provinces of Nicosia, Limassol and Larnaca, so that there was an intervention of the Police.
She explained that mainly people who have already made complaints have registered in the application, but pointed out that the response of complainants to install this application in these cases is not always positive.
For this reason, he said that efforts are being made to inform the public, so that those who have a reasonable concern that they may face such a risk, know that they have the possibility to register, after submitting a relevant form to the police, so that their application can be evaluated, to determine if other procedures need to be done through other services to support each case.
"The need for the panic button arose from the fact that, although many positive steps have been taken in recent years in our country, both in the legislative framework and in the perfection of projects for the empowerment and support and protection of victims by both the Police and the other co-competent services, we know that crimes of this nature often remain behind closed doors and many people who experience this form violence may still have difficulty in revealing it, for various reasons," Ms. Nikolaou noted.
He added that the application "essentially enables victims of domestic violence, when they are in a position of immediate danger and have no other way, to seek help from the Police, either because the perpetrator is next to them or because there is an increased risk of receiving serious violence, to press the button and ask for immediate help to respond to the Police in a discreet way".
To hit the root of the problem, to focus on the perpetrator, says Ep. Equality
The need to give the necessary weight to actions and interventions aimed at changing perceptions behind the occurrence of gender-based violence was underlined by the Commissioner for Gender Equality, Tossi Christodoulou, speaking to KYPE.
The Commissioner noted that attention needs to be paid to the prevention of gender-based violence, but also to the deterrence of perpetrators, in addition to supporting and protecting victims. He pointed out that the manifestation of gender-based violence is a matter of timeless power relations expressed by one gender to the other, adding that this is why the phenomenon has global dimensions, with numbers showing that one in three women will suffer some form of violence in their lives.
"We have to hit the root of the problem," Ms. Christodoulou underlined, explaining that behind the manifestation of gender-based violence are conscious and unconscious perceptions and stereotypes that push for such actions. He also stated that the responsibility of the perpetrator needs to be the subject of discussion and reflection.
Speaking about the role of her Office, she said that it focuses its efforts in particular to highlight the implications of the issue of gender equality in the prevention and treatment of gender-based violence, but also to overturn entrenched perceptions and stereotypes. He also noted that the legislation stemming from the compliance of the Republic of Cyprus with the Istanbul Convention is not limited only to penal clauses to combat the phenomenon.
CNA
