AND now, President Roia, will there be any changes in the courtroom when we are faced with crimes of gender violence?
«Of course it is true, the law approved yesterday in the Council is not only a symbolic or culturally important operation, however very important, but will be a very useful tool in the operation of that process».
Rape, “without consent is sexual violence.” Unanimous yes from the DPR
For Fabio Roiawho is now Milan’s chief justice after a lifetime dealing with crimes of gender violence, first as a prosecutor and then as a judge, the new law changing the crime of rape is a historic achievement.
The President, as judge, explain the reasons to us.
“Until now, in rape trials, to prove violence it was necessary to demonstrate an element of threat and coercion. The longest debate, and also the most dangerous and painful for the victims, was when, for example, the woman consumed alcohol or illegal drugs, a situation that often also led to what is known as secondary victimization.”
But now?
“Now this law eliminates this kind of argument by stating without further ado that we are faced with rape in the absence of full, conscious and current consent. Both before and during sexual intercourse. This is a great civilizational principle that ultimately brings Italy into harmony with the laws of other European countries and with supranational directives.”
And what real impact will this have on procedural processes?
“Meanwhile, this will spare female victims of violence the enormous sacrifice of having to answer questions that are, shall we say, poorly asked, remove the temptation to become secondary victims and will make trials quicker.”
But the question arises: is this really workable? In short, how can we evaluate whether a consensus is truly full, conscious, and current?
“Meanwhile, the person who is offended is responsible for his words. Therefore, I, a public prosecutor in the presence of a woman who comes to report or testify that she has been subjected to sexual acts without her consent, find myself faced with the news of a crime and I have to believe it. And this is a fundamental first step compared to many situations in which women describe a struggle to be believed.”
But then how do you check whether this consent has been expressed or not?
“It is of course necessary to verify the conditions under which the sexual act occurred. Of course we don’t ask for written consent, but let’s say from now on this is an issue that concerns men.”
In short, this is kind of the opposite of a test. Now does the man have to prove that the woman consented?
“If I were a prosecutor, in the presence of a woman who claims to have been raped, the evidence is already there. Of course this must be evaluated during the trial. Let’s say if a man is not sure about the woman’s consent, it is better for him to abstain. This is a very big principle of civilization. Let’s think only of women who are in a condition that is clearly fragile or psychologically inferior. What do we want to win, testosterone or respect?”.
You always say that Italy is one of the countries with the most advanced gender violence laws. From a political perspective, what is the value of this law?
“This is a beautiful signal, the law signed by the majority and the opposition is an affirmation that this is a civilizational problem that is the legacy of humanity and does not belong to the right or left wing. I seem to breathe the atmosphere of 1996 when all the female MPs together pushed for the passage of the sexual violence law. This is an extraordinary moment in politics.”
