Fresh protest in Madrid against gang rape acquittal

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Thousands of people marched through the streets of Madrid on Friday in a fresh protest against the acquittal of five men accused of gang raping an 18-year-old.

"The streets are ours at night as well," read a large banner carried by the demonstrators as they made their way from the equality ministry to the Supreme Court.

"Even alone and drunk, I want to get home," the crowd chanted.

A protest in Madrid, May 4, 2018, a week after five men, accused of gang raping a woman at Pamplona's bull-running festival, were sentenced to nine years in jail for "sexual abuse" avoiding the more serious charge of rape. /VCG Photo

Organizers said some 50,000 people took part in the protest, the latest in a string of demonstrations held across Spain since a court in the northern city of Pamplona on April 26 issued its ruling.

The five men, all in their late twenties, had been accused of raping a woman, then 18, at the entrance to an apartment building in Pamplona on July 7, 2016, at the start of the week-long San Fermin festival, which drew tens of thousands of visitors.

They took a video of the incident with their smartphones and then bragged about it on a WhatsApp messaging group where they referred to themselves as "La Manada" ("The Pack").

The men were acquitted of sexual assault, which includes rape, but sentenced to nine years for the lesser offence of sexual abuse, which under Spanish law implies there was no violence or intimidation.

Demonstrators shout slogans during a protest in Madrid, May 4, 2018. /VCG Photo

One of the three judges had argued that the men should be completely acquitted.

"This ruling about 'the pack' was the drop that caused the cup to spill over," Ana Carbajo, a 61-year-old psychologist, told AFP with indignation at the protest.

The angry backlash against the verdict follows the wave of feminist protest movements around the world sparked by the #MeToo campaign against sexual harassment and assault.

"What is most shocking is that one of the judges came out saying that he wanted the five to be fully acquitted," said Sara Mosquera, a 20-year-old student.

She carried a sign that reads: "There will always be packs if we protect the wolves".

Defense lawyers had argued the victim agreed to the sexual encounter and would only acknowledge the gang had stolen a phone from the girl, who was left half naked in the building entrance.

Lawyers for the woman and attorneys for the men have said they will appeal.

The Spanish government has said it will consider reforming the country's rape laws.

Source(s): AFP