The reform of the law, known as Solo Sí, of the Spanish Organic Law for the Full Guarantee of Sexual Freedom, has aroused many conflicts. Following the last reform, several judges have reduced the sentences of prisoners imprisoned for sexual assault. In order to recover it, this new reform is being carried out. On Monday the PSOE registered at the congress.
It was announced last week, but due to the discrepancies of the Spanish coalition government, it has been delayed this week. The PSOE expected an agreement with the United Nations Podemos, but the weekend negotiations have not worked: the PSOE will present it on one side. The Minister of Equality, Irene Montero, made it clear at an event held on Sunday in Madrid that they are prepared to accept the conditions of the PSOE, but she stressed that the core of the law is unnegotiable: “Consent cannot be touched”.
The negotiations have become entangled at the point of approval. UP accuses the PSOE of falling into “right-wing pressures” and completing the reform. Before, the Penal Code included two types of sanctions: if violence or intimidation existed it was an attack and if there was no abuse. Since the reform of the law, taking into account the approval, no distinction is made, they are all attacks and are aggravated by the nature of the attack. A number of prisoners are demanding in the courts to take advantage of the reform and reduce their sentences.
For example, on Monday they announced that the Provincial Court of Navarra denies the reduction of the penalty of Ángel Boza. For the collective violation of the Sanfermines of 2016, the sentence of 15 years in prison is being served, and Solo Sí was appealed after the reform of the law. The request has not been accepted.
Now, according to Justice Minister Pilar Llop, it is essential to incorporate “violence and intimidation” into the law so that judges can re-impose higher sanctions. However, UP has argued from the outset that the problem is not the content of the law, but its interpretation: “In the democratic system, laws are majority and applied by judges, do not distort them,” said Ione Belarra, Minister of Social Rights and Secretary General of Podemos, on Sunday. Within the government coalition, tension has increased considerably.