Reduced Prison Sentences Lead Spain to Reconsider New Sex Abuse Law
The law, which is similar to ones in 11 other European countries, followed the notorious 'Wolf Pack' case where an 18-year-old woman was gang raped in 2016 during a festival in Pamplona, Spain.
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Spain’s new ‘yes means yes’ law, which puts any non-consensual sex into the category of rape, is being reviewed following concerns from victims, law enforcement and advocates, Graham Keeley reports for Euro News. The law, which is similar to legislation introduced in 11 other European countries, followed the notorious ‘Wolf Pack’ case where an 18-year-old woman was gang raped in 2016 during a festival in Pamplona, Spain and the perpetrators were given a lesser charge of sexual abuse, igniting protests all over Spain. But now, advocates are calling out cases where the law is being used to justify reduced sentences for convicted rapists.
“After some sentences that were handed down, I think that this issue needs to be studied,” said Maria Jesus Montero, Spanish Treasury Minister, to Senate on Tuesday. “Obviously, it was not the objective of the law that the sentences for child abuse could be lowered. Quite the opposite.”
