It’s almost a certainty. Even the “division” in the PS does not open the door to the crime of adult rape as a public crime. The PSD will vote against the BE, PAN, IL and Chega bills, approving only the Socialists’ proposal, but with the “caution” to change legal aid in the discussion, because “it makes no sense that whoever can pay, has the benefit of cost”.
Paula Cardoso, vice-chairman of the social-democratic parliamentary committee, assured DN “a vast majority” of his party’s deputies will make public crime proposals unfeasible [a do BE e a petição]but also those of PAN, IL and Chega who create a mitigated solution – the crime is public, but allows the victim to refuse criminal prosecution.
“The victim’s interest in self-determination and the will of the victim should not be underestimated. We cannot sacrifice the will of the victim”, says deputy Paula Cardoso, who also explains that the refusal of the “moderate solution” is based on a simple statement: “It makes no sense. It exposes the victim again.”
At the meeting of the PSD group “there was no dissenting voiceHowever, there is no voting discipline because it is “a crime of conscience”.
And does it make sense that the rape of a 17-year-old woman is a public crime, but when she is 18 it is no longer? “It’s the same difference between not being able to vote at 17 and being able to vote at 18,” Reply to the Vice-President of the Social Democratic Parliamentary Committee.
PSD’s intention to vote against collides with demands from BE and IL today at noon [falta perceber que farão PAN e Chega] so that the respective bills “go to committee for debate in the specialty” without a vote on it, so this Friday.
“It is customary to tolerate, it is parliamentary practice, that the other parties, because the application must be voted on, allow the proposals to be accepted in this way. I hope there is tolerancea Bloco de Esquerda source told DN.
“The expectation that in the specialty after today’s vote the petition of 107,000 people would not be ignored [permitindo que os projetos descessem à discussão na especialidade sem votação] and that a wide public debate would then be opened about it,” as a government source told DN, now depends on the absolute socialist parliamentary majority – which has deputies who clearly advocate turning the crime of rape into a public crime.
The case has already caused “discomfort” to the government after the justice minister publicly expressed a “personal opinion” as if “the government as a whole was against it, when it is not true,” a PS source told DN.
Source: DN
