A group of legislators presented a bill to fight street sexual harassment in public or private spaces and establish the procedure to be followed in these cases, as well as the prison sentences for that crime.
The initiative, which is processed under file 20299, would regulate the application of the necessary protective measures to guarantee the dignity and integrity of the victims of street sexual harassment.
According to the text, street sexual harassment is any act of sexual connotation, committed against a person’s will in public spaces, in which the harassing and harassed people have no relationship, without having the consent of the victim and which makes the victim feels any kind of intimidation, hostility, degradation, humiliation, etc., in public spaces.
The following cases are included as street sexual harassment:
-Nonverbal or verbal acts such as obscene gestures, panting and any sound of a sexual nature.
-Words, comments, insinuations or verbal expressions of a sexual nature alluding to the body or any sexual act or that is humiliating, hostile or offensive towards the victim.
-Capture of images, videos or any audiovisual record of another person’s body or any part of it, without their consent and that have a sexual connotation.
-Disclosure of that material by the harasser.
-Intimidating approaches, exhibitionism, masturbation or pursuit.
Judges could execute the following measures:
-Order the stalker to immediately walk away from the victim. If the order is resisted or violated, the Public Force will intervene.
-Prohibit the bully to intimidate, threatenor cause harm to the victim.
-Prohibit the bully to assault, disturb or intimidate any member of the victim’s family .
-Issue an order of protection and police assistance to protect the victim.
-The protection measures will be maintained for up to one year .
The initiative adds an article to punish street sexual harassment with jail.
-The penalty of imprisonment would be from six months to two years.
-It would be from two to 10 years in prison in cases where street sexual harassment is committed against a minor, pregnant women, senior people, disabled people or whose mobility is reduced and those who are in a state of temporary intoxication.