Parties opposing the bill say the Penal Code is being used to promote the ideology of the ruling socialist party.
Newsroom (April 8, 2022, 12:00 PM, Gaudium Press) Unfortunately, as predicted and in a clear attack on freedom of expression and conscience, the Spanish Senate approved the law proposed by the socialist party now in power two days ago, which penalizes pro-lifers who pray or gather near abortion clinics. Those who act in this way can be sentenced to three months or even a year in prison, in addition to other penalties.
The PP, Vox, and UPN parties voted against the initiative
The new article in the Penal Code equates pro-lifers with abusers since no prior complaint is required. In other words, prayer vigils and the so-called ‘rescue’ of pro-lifers are equated with cases of gender violence, since only this type of coercion dispenses with prior reporting.
Reaction from Senators
Vox Senator Jacobo Gonzalez-Robatto who is against this approval said that what pro-lifers do “consists solely and exclusively of a last chance for mothers and children.”
For his part, PP Senator Fernando de Rosa said that this modification of the criminal code is an “example of the sectarianism of the PSOE and its partners.” “You are not weighing rights, but you are using the Criminal Code as a tool to spread your ideology and as a mechanism to mark people who do not think like you,” he stressed.
With information from ReligionEnLibertad.
Compiled by Sarah Gangl
