A strong gesture. Spanish deputies voted on Thursday for a text aimed at toughening the law against rape by introducing consent into the law. This text, dubbed “Solo si es si”, “Only a yes is a yes” in French, considers that any sexual act not consented to in a clear and free manner will now be considered rape.
The text, which must now be voted on by the Senate before being adopted, was voted by a majority by the Spanish deputies. 201 votes for, 140 against – the deputies of the People’s Party (right) and Vox (extreme right) – and three abstainers. It had been adopted by the Council of Ministers in the spring of 2020, and presented as a great promise from the Spanish left in power.
“Today is a great day for all women. The Assembly approved with a large majority the law “Only a yes is a yes”. We owe it to all the victims of sexual violence and thus leave a better present and future for our daughters, sisters and friends”, greeted on Twitter Irene Montero, the Spanish Minister for Equality.
A case that shocked the country in 2016
This text would thus introduce the notion of explicit sexual consent into the law: if it is not clearly expressed by people, it could be considered as rape. The law also allows advertising that promotes pornography to be prohibited.
The desire to introduce the notion of “explicit sexual consent” into the Penal Code dates from 2018, after the controversy arising from the so-called “La Meute” case. Five men had been sentenced to nine years in prison for “sexual abuse” (not gang rape) of an 18-year-old woman during the Pamplona festivities in 2016.
The verdict of the case and the release of the individuals had angered many Spaniards. In 2019, the sentence had been requalified by the Spanish Supreme Court: the highest Spanish judicial body had increased the sentences pronounced against these five men to 15 years in prison by requalifying the facts of “rape”