The Socialist Parliamentary Group registered this Tuesday in Congress its bill to prohibit pimping in all its forms. Practically the same one that was presented in 2022, except that a modification of the Penal Code that the Sexual Freedom law already made is deleted and an increase in the range of sentences is added, which was one to three years in prison and goes from two to four for anyone who, for profit, promotes, favors or facilitates the prostitution of another person, even with that person's consent. Two years ago, the content of that text was an amendment by the socialists to the law of the only yes is yes, which was in full process. An agreement was not possible with its then Government partner, Unidas Podemos, and that issue jeopardized what was the star law (and also the most controversial) of the Ministry of Equality, with Irene Montero. Thus, the PSOE decided to remove that amendment and present it, a day later, as a bill.
“What we intend is to modify the Penal Code to punish pimping, that is, to punish the profit of prostitution, to punish the third lease, which consists of the transfer of real estate or premises for the exercise of prostitution,” he said. explained the socialist spokesperson in Congress, Patxi López, in a press conference after registering the document in the Lower House. López, and also Andrea Fernández, the party's Equality spokesperson, have argued that “it is estimated that there are some 45,000 sexually exploited women” in Spain and have added that in 2021 “there was only one sentence that convicted a pimp.” In this sense, they have defended the need for the law, whose ultimate objective is to abolish prostitution.
López has highlighted that this norm recognizes the status of direct victims of all people who are being prostituted in a situation of pimping: “It is another example that, while others continue playing in the mud, we are doing politics to advance in rights and equality.”
Last March 8, the Government announced that it was recovering another law, the trafficking law, which also began to be processed during the last legislature. It happened, and had the endorsement of the advisory bodies, but the early general elections of 23-J interrupted that process and the norm declined. With the entry of the new coalition Executive, that text was put on hold again — for not being “sufficiently mature,” the Minister of Equality, Ana Redondo, said in February — and was taken out of the drawer again two weeks ago.
The latest draft of that rule, to which this newspaper had access, includes modifications compared to the last one known, from November 2022, such as a whole development of data protection or prosecutors specialized in the matter. This Draft Comprehensive Organic Law against trafficking and exploitation of human beings, like this proposed socialist law, still has to go through the procedures again, although the PSOE sees it as “viable” for it to be published and in force in the next four years.
“We have decided to maintain the trafficking law on the one hand and this law on the other to streamline and maintain the nature of the work of the last legislature,” says Fernández about the possibility of having included the modifications to the Penal Code proposed by this norm in the treats. “All of this, in the end, works together, and it is not ruled out that they end up coinciding in parliament,” he added.
Consensus with parliamentary groups
Patxi López, regarding whether they are willing to talk with the PP to move the law forward, since it seems that at this moment they do not have the support of their usual parliamentary partners, has assured that they are going to talk “with all the parliamentary groups that want abolish prostitution in this country.” The PP, adds Andrea Fernández, “already had a very clear position of support” when they presented it for the first time: “I would be very surprised if the PP dropped, it would not make sense with the very clear position of the old legislature. And of course we have to talk to our important partners and negotiate.”
López foresees a debate “even semantic” because, as he has indicated, “prohibiting is an exercise that victimizes more, since the victim of exploitation would also be persecuted.” “To abolish is to make it disappear by all means,” he stated.
Sumar is divided on this issue, as Unidas Podemos did last term. Neither Catalunya en Comú, nor Compromís or Más Madrid are abolitionist, a position that Izquierda Unida does defend. In the group they point out that for now they are talking “calmly” between the different parties in the space and this Tuesday they threw the ball out, ensuring that they should study the text.
In any case, some authorized voices in Sumar perceive that the PSOE seeks with this proposal to “reduce its internal contractions” as an “electoral weapon”, rather than the stability of the Executive at a particularly complicated time, after giving up negotiating the 2024 Budgets and in a context of certain legislative paralysis, with Basque, Catalan and European elections between April and June.
The same sources insist that this is an issue on which there is no single position in feminism and warn socialists: “They are not going to be able to destabilize us.” Sumar's spokesperson in Congress, Íñigo Errejón, has insisted that they will value the socialist law when they know it and has explained what the “minimum floor” of his party is. “We are in favor of Human Rights, women's rights and advances in women's rights.” “In no case are we going to support any setback,” he warned.
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