Mayor warns of women in the elevator
Now, from the beginning: Who is this man and what did he say exactly?
The man is called Francisco Javier León de la Riva, is 68 years old, was previously a gynecologist and is now mayor of the Spanish city of Valladolid. In an interview, he spoke about rapes and that allegations of victims must be carefully considered.
And then?
Then he said, "I've got scruples on a lift, Imagine going into a lift with a girl, and then suddenly ripping off her skirt and bra, running out and yelling that you attacked her. You have to be careful about something like that. "
Oh, because something like that happens every day!
Exactly, but that's how he portrayed it. And it went even further. He said one could "not use police officers in every park". At six o'clock in the morning, a young woman just had to "watch where she was going."
I beg your pardon? That's not possible. Outcry!
The citizens of his city also found that. Hundreds of women and men moved to the town hall and demanded his resignation. As a sign of protest, they hung bras in front of the entrance.
And how did he react?
He has since apologized. But that's not enough for the critics. Marisol Morais, spokeswoman for a local women's union, says, according to the Guardian: "We can not just sit back and take those comments." After all, that is the man who is responsible for the welfare of his citizens.
She is right.
Especially since it has just been announced that the number of sexual assault in Spain is increasing. Every year, there are 1,000 rapes - and these are just the known cases. Domestic violence is also an increasing problem: in Spain alone, 50 women have already been killed by their own partners.
