Dembska, a 29-year-old Polish national, was brutally raped and strangled on 2nd January in Sliema by her alleged killer Abner Aquilina.

This tragedy has shone a light on the culture of misogyny that women (and most marginalised groups in society) have been subjected to for years on end. From catcalling to physical harassment to sexual assault – women are speaking out about their harrowing experiences that they’ve been forced to endure simply because of their gender.

Now, Grech has spoken out about the disgusting experience she went through to highlight the sheer disrespect that these men had when hurling such a comment in front of the memorial of a woman who was sexually objectified to her death.

“I went for a run on the Sliema front and I stopped by Paulina’s memorial where there are flowers, just to pay my respects,” Grech explained.

“I literally stopped for two seconds and two men stopped to say ‘aw sorm’, in front of her memorial.”

“I’m literally in shock, this is never going to end.”

Grech told Lovin Malta that the reason she posted this video was to show the twisted ways and lengths some people would go to just to be disrespectful.

“Even if they weren’t aware of the incident, it was clearly a memorial and I was clearly paying my respects,” she added.

“Usually these comments are background noise to us women but it’s becoming clearer to me how bad this harassment actually is.”

For those who don’t believe in the misogynistic undertones that affect women daily, take this disappointingly ironic situation as your point of reference because this is real.

And people all over the island are done with feeling unsafe.

Unfortunately though, too many are taking the bravery and courage of women as a cry for attention, and this is why so many are driven to silence.

Women are not ‘victimising’ themselves but they have definitely been made victims by this culture of shame, discrimination and hate.

If you or a loved one has ever endured harassment and want to share your story to continue creating awareness, you can reach out to me in confidence at [email protected]

Have you ever been catcalled? Let us know in the comments below