2023-07-05 14:16:30
© Phil Nijhuis
Responding to the news that the Netherlands House of Representatives has voted to amend the Sexual Offenses Act by introducing a consent-based definition of rape, Dagmar Oudshoorn, Director of Amnesty International Netherlands, said:
“By reforming our outdated law and recognizing non-consensual sex as rape, the Netherlands has taken an important step in fighting widespread sexual violence and improving access to justice for survivors..”
“The passage of this bill is a historic victory for sexual assault survivors and a testament to years of tireless campaigning by hundreds of activists and survivor groups.”
“This bill removes the requirement of physical force, threat or coercion for there to be a violation. It also makes the Netherlands the 17th of 31 European countries analyzed by Amnesty International to recognize that non-consensual sex is rape.”
Following the approval of the reform today by the House of Representatives, the law is expected to be promulgated in a vote by the Senate in the next nine months.
#Sex #consent #rape #Netherlands