Montero highlights that Spain is "overwhelmingly feminist" and does not rule out continuing to lead Equality

He insists that he did well to approve the law of the only yes is yes and acknowledges that his most difficult moment was learning about the sentence reductions

MADRID, 3 Sep. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The acting Minister for Equality, Irene Montero, has highlighted that Spain is increasingly an "overwhelmingly feminist" society, after the reaction that arose from the Rubiales case, and affirms that she likes her work at the head of the Ministry and does not rule out continuing in The charge.

"Spain is a feminist country. A country that knows that we are a better democracy if we guarantee all rights for all women, that this is also good for men. That little by little is moving towards a society that stops normalizing and make sexual violence invisible. Who knows that what we have to do is do what we have done, say 'Jenni is not alone', call a spade a spade, understand that every sexual act without consent is sexual violence," he said in an interview this Sunday in El País, collected by Europa Press.

In this sense, Montero adds that it is a reason for "pride" for Spain to have a society at the "vanguard" of feminism. "The feminist movement is the best thing this country has," she stressed. The minister has also extolled that men should break "the gentlemen's agreement" and know that "a society in which women's sexual freedom is guaranteed is a better society for them as well." "Spain is increasingly an overwhelmingly feminist society," she insists.

The minister explained that the limit between sexual freedom and sexual violence is exclusively consent, referring to the fact that a non-consensual kiss is sexual assault.

"Logically, there is sexual violence of very different intensity and they have to have a different treatment, but it is very important to understand that any sexual act without consent is part of the same logic according to which machismo establishes false ideas, a series of roles and premises that place women's bodies at the disposal of men. This is one of the deepest bases of inequality between women and men. If we want a feminist, egalitarian society, we must change what is called the culture of violation by a culture of consent," he said.

Likewise, he has regretted that there are "deniers" in positions of power who "minimize" the resources to fight against sexist violence and who publicly say that "gender violence does not exist." "During all these months, we have been told many times that we wanted to run too much. However, this moment is showing that, far from having gone too fast, we have gone at the pace that our society demands, perhaps faster than what the most reactionary sectors would like it, but at the pace that our society demands", he indicated.

In this regard, Irene Montero bets that in the next legislature "deeper" in the feminist policies that society needs. "Feminist policies have to be deepened in the next legislature and they have to advance even more strongly than in this one," she points out.

On the other hand, Irene Montero does not rule out continuing to lead the Ministry and assures that "it is a decision that is never individual, it is collective." "I am available to my colleagues and my colleagues, I always have been. Obviously I like what I do, I think it makes sense and that it is useful, but that is never an individual decision", she has affirmed.

Asked if at any point in the legislature she has considered resigning, the minister acknowledges that she would have been forgiven for not showing her face and confesses that her most difficult moment was learning about the judicial decisions to reduce sentences, after approving the Law of only yes is if.

"I would never have forgiven myself for not showing my face. There have been very difficult moments, but I have never felt alone. But without a doubt the most difficult moment is when we began to learn about those judicial decisions to reduce sentences," she revealed.

Regarding the errors in the norm, Montero points out that the State has the obligation to apologize to the victims or their next of kin, although he adds that "it was not the content of the law nor the will of the legislator."

"It is legitimate for society to worry when there are judicial decisions that are lowering the sentences for some sexual offenders. However, I also believe that in the Rubiales case we are being able to verify how the majority of our society understands that it is necessary for consent to be in the center and that sexual violence can no longer be invisible", he detailed.

Lastly, he stresses that he does not believe there are errors in the law and affirms that it is showing that they have done well in moving it forward. "Don't you think that it would have been much easier for me to say that there was a mistake, and that also that part of the law was made by a socialist ministry? But I don't think so. What he would not have allowed me is to put myself in profile. I accept that there are many people who raise criticisms and I am willing to dialogue, but the passage of time is showing that we have done well in approving a law like the only yes is yes, which changes the paradigm, not only criminal but above all social, in the treatment of sexual violence", has been sentenced.