MEPs vote to have common definition of rape based on lack of consent

Today, MEPs voted to have a common EU definition of rape based on the lack of consent.

Diana Riba i Giner, Greens/EFA MEP and FEMM shadow on the file, comments:

“Only yes means yes. We welcome this report which reaffirms the Parliament’s commitment to combat all forms of gender-based violence, including rape. This is an ambitious initiative that demands an EU-wide common definition of rape based on the lack of consent. This is essential to ensure equal justice for survivors of rape across the EU and to end the impunity of perpetrators.

“We need a culture of consent. Against the protest of the right and the far right, we have managed to keep an ambitious text and even strengthen it by including the need for mandatory training for professionals such as legal and medical staff and a reference to rape culture in the report. We call on the European Commission to put forward legislation on a common definition of rape before the end of the mandate and add gender based violence to the list of eurocrimes with a view to effectively combating all forms of violence against women.”