'Only yes means yes': Spanish parliament approves amended rape law

Spain’s parliament on Wednesday approved a law aimed at fighting sexual violence after undergoing changes to fix a loophole that allowed some offenders reduce their sentences.

The amended “Only yes means yes” legislation, which reformed the criminal code to define all non-consensual sex as rape, will now become law after being voted through the Senate, Spain’s upper house of parliament.

“The reform has been passed,” said Senate president Ander Gil after the measure passed with the support of the ruling Socialists and the right-wing opposition Popular Party.

The amendments highlighted bitter divisions within Spain’s left-wing coalition ahead of regional and municipal elections in May, as well as a year-end general election which surveys suggest the right will win.

Law’s unintended consequences

The law came into force in October but sparked a backlash after it paradoxically reduced penalties for certain types of sexual crimes, freeing more than 100 offenders and securing reduced sentences for almost 1,000 others, court figures show.

The amendment closed the loophole by toughening some of the penalties lowered by the law, and reintroducing a clause relating to violence, intimidation or overriding the victim’s will.

It passed the lower house of parliament last week before moving to the Senate.

But the amendment enraged Podemos, the Socialists’ hardline left-wing coalition partner, which holds the equality ministry and had championed the legislation.

“This is not a step forward but a step back in terms of women’s rights,” said Equality Minister Irene Montero, who has blamed the problem on sexist judges misinterpreting the law.

Before the law took effect, rape victims needed to prove they were subjected to violence or intimidation.

Without that, the offence was classed as “sexual abuse” and carried lesser penalties than rape.

The issue was at the heart of a notorious 2016 gang rape of an 18-year-old woman by five men at the Pamplona bull-running festival.

What the “Only yes means yes” law did was drop the lesser charge of sexual abuse and class all violations as sexual assault, carrying harsher penalties.

It sought to shift the focus away from the victims’ resistance to a woman’s free and clearly expressed consent.

To close the loophole, the reform reintroduced new, heavier penalties for offences involving violence or intimidation — concepts that were removed from the original law, which focused solely on explicit consent.

With inputs from AFP

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