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Antigypsyism will be included as a hate crime in the Criminal Code [editar]

27/06/2022
FSG Igualdad y Lucha contra la discriminación

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Antigypsyism will be included as a hate crime in the Criminal Code
  • The amendment to the Equal Treatment Act introduces a final provision amending the Criminal Code to include antigypsyism among the reasons that can give rise to hate crimes.
  • The initiative, which passed with a broad consensus of 293 votes in favour and 50 abstentions, will now continue its parliamentary procedure in the Senate.
  • The Fundación Secretariado Gitano welcomes this historic milestone; it is something we have been demanding for years, and which has been made possible thanks to the efforts of Roma members of Congress.

On 26 May, the plenary session of the Congress of Deputies approved an organic amendment to the Proposition of Organic Law complementary to the Integral Law for Equal Treatment and Non-Discrimination, amending Organic Law 10/1995 of the Criminal Code.

This amendment will change the Criminal Code by introducing antigypsyism as one of the reasons explicitly contemplated when considering a crime to be a hate crime. This will entail the modification of Article 22, 4th exception, on the circumstances that aggravate criminal liability for committing a crime with discriminatory motivations and points 1 and 2 of Article 510, which regulates hate speech.

 

Adoption with a broad political consensus

The initiative, which received 293 votes in favour and 50 abstentions, has achieved, by far, the absolute majority required in Congress given its organic nature. For the FSG, this broad political consensus has a fundamental value: to convey to the Roma community that, from a wide spectrum of political positions and ideologies, they have the support of our legislative representatives.

This amendment will make those who publicly promote or incite hatred, discrimination or violence "on anti-Roma grounds" punishable by a prison sentence of one to four years and fines of six to twelve months. In addition, it is foreseen that when any type of crime regulated in our criminal code is committed "for anti-Roma reasons", the penalty will be higher than when there is no discriminatory motivation.

 

Historical debt towards the Roma community

The recognition of antigypsyism as a hate motive explicitly included in the Criminal Code is not only perfectly in line with European recommendations in this area, but also contributes to redressing human rights violations committed in the past with an anti-Roma motivation. In short, this is a historic milestone for the Roma community, historically repressed by institutions and laws, and which finally finds in the current legislation, a recognition of the discrimination they have suffered, as well as a specific protection provided by the legislation and the courts.

 

Final approval

On 22 June, after its vote in the Senate, the Spanish Parliament definitively approved the Proposition of Organic Law complementary to the Integral Law for Equal Treatment and Non-Discrimination, amending Organic Law 10/1995 of the Criminal Code.

Speech by Sara Giménez, Congress of Deputies 26.05.2022
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