TV show gave murderer chance to kill

November 23, 2007

Civil rights organisations in Spain have joined calls for a TV talk show to be axed following the murder of Russian woman Svetlana Orlova. The 30-year-old was fatally stabbed just days after she rejected an on-air marriage proposal from her ex-boyfriend Ricardo Navarro.

Rights groups say the show's producers broke a court ruling which banned Ricardo from coming near her.

As the details of the case unfold, commentators are now asking whether the murder could have been prevented.

Juan Antonio Gimenez from the Information Newspaper says Svetlana did speak out last March "but then she decided not to prosecute him."

"Then a third party denounced Ricardo to the police, saying she had marks on her neck and the case was re-opened,” Gimenez said.

President of Valencia's Supreme Court Juan Luis De La Rua said TV talk shows are often designed with confrontation in mind.  They sometimes "add fire to a heated situation," he said.

"Perhaps we should re-examine those TV programmes and their potential consequences," De La Rua said.

Svetlana died on November 19 in an Alicante hospital from a knife wound to the neck.  She leaves a five-year-old son, not fathered by Navarro. The boy is being looked after by his biological father.

Ricardo Navarro is now a suspect in the murder case, but he denies involvement.

Women's groups in Spain have been outraged by the case. Covadonga Naredo from the Progressist Women Federation says "media professionals should be capable of assessing when a situation is delicate when working with women."

Meanwhile, non-governmental organisations say that at least 66 women have died as a result of domestic violence this year in Spain.

Professor of Psychology Carmen Manas Viejo says people need to look out for each other. 

“If you know the woman upstairs is being beaten, then call the police. We need to show solidarity with each other because it could happen to any of us. It could happen to your child, to mine if I’m not careful," she said.