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DOMESTIC ABUSE

Plight of mother-of-two ‘abuse victim’ shakes Spain

The plight of a Spanish woman who vanished with her children after defying a court order to hand them over to her Italian ex-partner, found guilty of domestic violence, has shaken the country.

Plight of mother-of-two 'abuse victim' shakes Spain
Juana Rivas during a press conference last week. Photo: Alex Camara/AFP

The case burst into the limelight this week just as lawmakers agreed a series of measures to tackle abuse against women, in a country that has made the struggle against domestic violence a priority.

Juana Rivas, a woman in her mid-30s from Maracena in southern Spain, was living in Italy with her partner when she took both their sons – aged 3 and 11 – away in May 2016 and never returned, alleging abuse.

According to the Maracena municipal women's centre which is representing her, she had suffered  “psychological and physical violence.”

Her ex-partner, who was found guilty of abusing her in 2009, filed a complaint for child abduction, according to Andalusia's high court, which oversees all courts in the southern region including the one that has dealt with the case.

In an interview with Italy's Ansa news agency, he denied any violence.

“I want to be able to hold my children again in my arms, I haven't seen them since last year,” he said.

A Spanish court subsequently decided the children should return to Italy, arguing among other things that the eldest boy was evaluated by psychologists and did not show any indication of not wanting to see his father.

Rivas appealed but this was rejected and the court ordered her to hand over the children on Wednesday, July 26th.

'Defend them'

Footage of Rivas earlier this week showed her in tears as she appealed to the media.

“If they want to steal them from me, I will defend them until my last breath,” she told reporters.

On Wednesday, she never turned up and has remained in hiding ever since with her children.

The case has sparked an outpouring of support for Rivas, not only from fellow residents in Maracena, but further afield in Spain.

Netizens have taken to Twitter to pledge their support with the hashtags #Juanaestaenmicasa (Juana is in my house) or #YoSoyJuana (I am Juana) and a petition launched on Change.org in December 2016 has garnered more than 208,000 signatures.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy told reporters “you have to put yourself in the place of this mother” when asked about the case.

“She had to go live in Italy, come back, she's been assaulted twice, her husband was sentenced by the courts,” he said.

But in the Ansa interview, her ex-partner accused her of organising a media campaign against him.

The court in charge of the case has ordered both parties to appear at a hearing on August 8th to decide how to proceed.

By Marianne Barriaux

SEXISM

France reveals new measures to combat domestic violence

France's gender equality minister Marlène Schiappa has announced the government's new plans against domestic abuse which aims to make sure women can "leave before it is too late".

France reveals new measures to combat domestic violence
Photo: Depositphotos
France's gender equality minister presented Monday five new measures to fight domestic violence.
 
Her announcement came a day after the launch of a €4 million TV campaign aimed at people who have witnessed sexual or domestic violence.
 
On top of the TV campaign, which is part of the new measures, the government plans to increase funding and staff for the national helpline (3919) for women suffering from domestic violence.
 
Other plans include an online platform to report domestic violence and make it easier for women to file complaints against their attackers and the creation of a GPS tool to help locate emergency shelters for women suffering from domestic abuse.
 
Marlene Schiappa Photo: AFP
 
The government also wants to promote links between charities and employers to promote 'local contracts' for people who have suffered from sexual or domestic violence.
 
“My aim is that women leave before it is too late and for us to create all the necessary conditions for this to happen,” Schiappa told RTL radio.
 
In 2016, 123 women were killed by their partners or former partners. That's the equivalent of one woman every 3 days.  The numbers for 2017 have not yet been released, but the minister said that they had not gone down since the previous year
 
“That number never drops and that's terrible for the public authorities, whatever the political choices made, on the left or on the right, that figure remains the same and it's chilling,” Schiappa said.
 
Since her appointment, the outspoken Schiappa has introduced a raft of measures to fight against sexual violence and harassment. For example, in France, men can now be fined a minimum of  €90 if they catcall or make lewd comments about a woman's body or appearance in public places.
 
In August, the French parliament voted for new legislation giving more time for people who were sexually harassed as children to make a police complaint and tougher laws on sex with minors.
 
 
 

 

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