Behind closed doors, in homes that are supposed to be a refuge, things are happening that make your hair stand on end. The police detained three people in several separate cases of domestic violence - beating children, threats with sharp objects, and smashing furniture with an axe.

The cases are different, but the pattern is the same: violence within the family circle, where the victim is least able to escape. The detentions show that the system reacted, but the question that remains is how long that violence went on before anyone called the police - and how many similar cases never reach a report at all.

Domestic violence in the Balkans was for too long treated as a „private matter" that both neighbours and institutions stay silent about. Every detention is good news, but the real measure isn't how many perpetrators are caught, it's how many victims are protected in time. Does the system protect them before the worst happens, or does it only react once the axe is already out?