Spain

Responding to news that five men known as the "Wolf Pack" have been sentenced to 15 years in prison for rape by Spain's Supreme Court, Massimo Moratti, Deputy Director of the European Regional Office said:

“We are delighted that justice has finally prevailed in this horrific case and that the rights of the survivor have been upheld. But the journey to get here has been long, and caused the woman involved further unnecessary and avoidable suffering.

“This case shows exactly why it’s so crucial for Spain’s Penal Code to be amended. Sex without consent is rape; it’s that simple. The assumption in law that a victim gives their consent because they have not resisted is deeply problematic and undermines access to justice, especially since “involuntary paralysis” or “freezing” has been recognized by experts as a common response to sexual assault.

Amnesty International has verified through cases it has documented that the Public Prosecutor’s Office (PPO) is not fulfilling its obligation to pursue investigations into excessive use of force on 1 October  by state security forces, specifically members of a special tactical unit of the National Police and the Civil Guard.

In a report presented today, 1-O en Cataluña: Obstáculos para la investigación del uso excesivo de la fuerza (1 October in Catalonia: Obstacles in the investigation of excessive use of force), Amnesty International shows that, faced with the efforts of various courts to establish the truth of what happened, the PPO is taking steps that obstruct the proceedings and encourage the disqualification of complaints. The PPO has even shown a lack of interest in the process, complicating the efforts of judicial authorities to clarify what happened.

For example, the PPO tried to present acts of violence by demonstrators as fundamental evidence that should preclude investigations into excessive use of force, presenting videos showing the participation of protesters in incidents with security forces.

On 16 October, a judge of the Audiencia Nacional ordered the pre-trial detention of Jordi Sanchez and Jordi Cuixart, the presidents, respectively, of the pro-Catalan independence organisations the Catalan National Assembly (ANC) and Omnium Cultural. They have been charged with sedition under article 544 of the Spanish Criminal Code in connection with protests they organized in Barcelona on 20 and 21 September. The protests opposed and sought to obstruct an operation conducted by law enforcement and judicial authorities in several governmental buildings to prevent the organization of the referendum on the independence of Catalonia on 1 October.

The police and judicial operation conducted on 20 and 21 September was based on a judicial order issued by a court in Barcelona and involved the searches of several official governmental buildings. On 7 September, the Constitutional Court had ruled that the referendum was illegal and against the Spanish Constitution.

Responding to clashes between police and protesters around today's Catalan referendum, John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International Europe and Central Asia Director said:

"Spanish police have clearly been obstructed in the exercise of their duties at numerous polling stations today, but there is plenty of footage to suggest that police officers have used excessive and disproportionate force at at least some of them. With tensions running high, it is essential that both Spanish law and international human rights law is respected.

“Spanish police must avoid the excessive use of force; and whenever the lawful use of force is unavoidable, they must use it with restraint and in proportion to the seriousness of the law enforcement objective.”

A delegation of Amnesty International researchers has been deployed in Catalonia throughout the day to monitor the respect for human rights. The organisation will publish more detailed findings tomorrow.

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For more information please contact: Jacob Kuehn, Media Relations 613-744-7667 ext 236 or jkueyn@amnesty.ca

Amnesty International strongly condemns the attack that left numerous people dead and wounded on Thursday 17 August on La Rambla in Barcelona. The organization expresses its solidarity with the victims and their families and urges the authorities to conduct a swift and thorough investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice.

“We send our full support and solidarity to the victims of this despicable act at this difficult time”, announced Esteban Beltrán, Director of AI Spain. “We must continue to stand up to hate. These types of attacks demonstrate a complete disregard for the most fundamental principles of humanity,” he added.

The abandoning of a draconian anti-abortion bill that threatened the health, dignity and lives of women and girls in Spain is a step in a positive direction, Amnesty International said today.

“We’re glad that the Spanish Prime Minister has finally scuppered this retrogressive anti-abortion bill, but the fact remains it should never have been on the legislature’s books in the first place,” said Esteban Beltrán, Director at Amnesty International Spain.

“The government must not control decisions women and girls make about their lives and health, and fully implement the recommendations by international human rights bodies.”

The proposed bill presented a series of obstacles to accessing a safe and legal abortion. For example, a woman or girl seeking an abortion would have to obtain two certificates from doctors at different centres, confirming any risks to the life and health of the woman and the foetus. She would also be obliged to receive counselling and information on non-medical issues, and then to wait seven days during a “reflection” period.

Spain must refrain from forcibly returning Aleksandr Pavlov to Kazakhstan, Amnesty International said today, shortly after learning of the Spanish government’s decision to authorize his extradition.

“The Spanish government has decided to extradite Aleksandr Pavlov to Kazakhstan despite credible evidence that he would risk torture upon his return. If they send Aleksandr Pavlov back, they will violate Spain’s international legal obligations,” said Julia Hall, criminal justice expert at Amnesty International.

“The government must do the right thing and reverse this decision.”

Aleksandr Pavlov, a 37-year-old asylum seeker in Spain and Kazakhstani national, is currently in detention in the capital city of Madrid.

According to information received by Amnesty International from different sources, a decision authorising the extradition was taken by the Council of Ministers on 14 February. The decision has not yet been made public.