While Spain made news last year by becoming the first EU member state to pass legislation allowing women to receive paid leave for painful menstrual periods, the country still has work to do to protect girls and women. A judge in the central Spanish city of Ciudad Real has ruled that a Roma man will receive a significantly reduced prison sentence for raping and impregnating a 12-year-old girl because it is an acceptable cultural practice among gypsies.
The defendant will be sentenced to eight years and nine months in prison instead of 37 years. This is against Spanish law, which sets the legal age of consent at sixteen. The judge used a loophole in the law that allows legal exemptions if two people in a relationship are close in age. Aside from cultural traditions, the judge also decided to reduce the prison sentence because the girl acted older than her actual age.
Gypsy Girl Bought and Sold
In the same city, authorities arrested several people accused of buying and selling a 13-year-old girl. The case came to light after the 13-year-old girl chose to voluntarily abort a fetus due to a severe malformation. When authorities found her, she was pregnant again. The girl is already married, although she is only 13 years old. A 12-year-old girl in the same area was found by authorities after friends reported telling her she would be sold for 3,000 euros. Authorities began investigating the issue after the girl dropped out of school. His stepfather was found with 3,800 euros in his pocket, which he tried to claim he had earned during the olive harvest. However, it is important to note that the minimum age for marriage in Spain is 18. With judicial approval, this age limit may be lowered to 16 in certain cases.
Although it may be uncomfortable for people to accept, not all cultural traditions are acceptable in Europe. Spain outlawed slavery in 1817 and should not allow the buying and selling of young girls if it was done on the basis of cultural traditions. This creates the dangerous reality of two sets of laws. One for Hispanics and the other for members of minority communities. If this is done, it will put the social cohesion of this nation at risk. As it stands, Roma students still suffer from a significant education gap, with 62.8% of Roma aged 18-24 not finishing, compared to just 4% overall in the same age group in Spain. The poverty rate for Roma households is 87.4%
Possible Consequences of the Decision
Failure to deal harshly with the rape and impregnation of a young child, and failure to give the rapist a reasonable prison sentence, may risk provoking hatred rather than acceptance. Roma people faced social exclusion not only in Spain but throughout the European Union. This decision will do little to convince Spaniards and Europeans that further action is needed to improve the quality of life of Roma communities.
Apart from possible discrimination, more importantly, such decisions pave the way for the abuse of girls in minority communities. Although Spain should allow minority groups the freedom to practice their culture, this must still be within the Spanish legal framework. Harmful cultural practices such as child marriage, sex with minors and female genital mutilation should not be allowed in Spain (or the European Union), regardless of who is perpetuating these practices. Although EU member states should encourage people to preserve their heritage and traditions, not all traditions are equal.
But simultaneously, Roma activists and organizations that wanted to help integrate Roma communities spoke out to explain that harassment was not part of Roma culture. Beatriz Micaela Carrillo, Director General of Equal Treatment and Anti-Discrimination and Against Racism at the Spanish Ministry of Equality, also condemned the decision, saying that the courts should also defend the rights of Roma girls.
Solution
Although this decision was made with good intentions, it could have extremely negative consequences for minority groups in Spain. A decision that goes against Spanish law and allows an individual to commit a crime because of his past could increase tensions between Spaniards and minority groups. For everyone, not just Spaniards, just because an individual commits a crime or behaves badly does not mean that others similar to those particular individuals do the same.
The Spanish government must do more to protect victims of sexual crimes and potentially change legislation. While it may be thought logical to allow legal exemptions in cases involving individuals close to the age of consent, this should strictly be limited to individuals with small age gaps. In Italy and Cyprus, judges can grant age exemptions that include minors with an age difference of up to three years. The defendant had an age difference of 8 years with the victim. Just because he hit puberty at a younger age and looks older doesn’t make him an adult. A minimum age of consent can help protect girls, in particular, not only from abuse but also from underage pregnancy. This is extremely important due to birth complications that can occur if a girl is very small and not yet fully developed physically.