Xàtiva demonstrates against courts’ loss of jurisdiction over gender-based violence: “Incomprehensible”

VALENCIA, 25 November (EUROPA PRESS) –

The municipality of Xàtiva demonstrated this Friday, on the occasion of 25-N, International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, at a commemoration ceremony demanding the adequacy of repealing the “decree” 954/2022. judicial facility that assumes a loss of jurisdiction over gender-based violence at its borders. The participants said, “This decision is incomprehensible and cannot be undertaken.”

Municipal representatives, lawyers and civil society representatives from other municipalities in the region attended the demonstration, which was also supported by ICAV, to show their “deep discomfort and great concern”. The Royal Decree on the creation of new judicial units warning that Xàtiva has produced “a significant change” affecting its judicial district, “Alzira, which has lost its powers in favor of a special court for violence against women and is now created by the norm”.

As president of Consell de les Dones, Xàtiva Councilor for Women and Equality Lena Baraza was responsible for reading the 25-N’s corporate manifesto. Unfortunately, it remains necessary for all citizens to take to the streets as they continue to slaughter us,” she said.

Thus, he emphasized that this violence “is not an accidental phenomenon” as “it is part of a patriarchal system with hegemonic masculine values”. the fact of being born a woman. Today, we commemorate both the murderers who were directly responsible for their deaths and those who tried to justify, despise, and even deny violence against women.

In this sense, he emphasized that violence “has a gender” and “not only the data on the murdered women, but also the herds, sexual assaults, and the insecurity of all women when we go out.” the streets, chemical surrenders, indirect violence, and ultimately everything that underlies machismo and women suffers.” Hence, she claimed to “bet on more feminism, equality in human rights, and justice for half the population where these rights are violated.”

At this point, Xàtiva regrets the ratification of Royal Decree 954/2022 of 15 November to create new judicial units that “will no longer have jurisdiction and will no longer have jurisdiction in cases of sexist violence”, which provided for the reorganization of the courts. Alzira is establishing a special court for violence against women in its judicial district”.

A situation that “makes it difficult for victims and their legal representatives to act in practice”. He also described this decision as “incomprehensible and inescapable” as “the main service and resource for the protection of women, such as the right to a dignified and close justice, has been removed from our courts”.

For all these reasons, Consell de les Dones urgently demanded a court specializing in gender-based violence in Xàtiva, “stop sexist violence against women”, implement “realistic, strong and bold policies against violence against women”. forgiveness of governments to “fight this scourge of sexist violence” and “participation of all political and social actors in the fields of education, health, culture to make feminism a cross-penetrating problem”.

“DESTROY THIS BUG”

Claudia Suárez, representing local forensic professionals from Xàtiva Law Firm, joined in the demand that the scourge of sexist violence be eliminated and not allowed to continue any longer in our society. Suárez also denounced the court’s closure in Xàtiva for violence against women, which she warned “contributes to the abandonment of victims of gender-based violence and a secondary victimization of beaten women.” “We cannot consent to this, so we will do everything we can to ensure that this does not happen.”

The lawyer stressed that the consequences of this shutdown were “very easy to understand”, because “after a victim of violence has gathered courage and decided to report his partner, he will have to come to Xàtiva to file a complaint. The next day he will hop in a taxi alone and drive more than 70 kilometers. He’ll have to go all the way to Alzira to testify.”

A situation he described as “true barbarism,” he warned, “while there must be proximity and urgency to help the woman, they are taking justice away from the victim.” “Laws passed to date seek closeness to the victim, and with the new Royal Decree women are treated as a number, not a victim.”

“That’s why we’re here today. We’re here to tell Minister of Justice Gabriela Bravo and the Ministry of Justice that they made a very serious mistake and that they should consult the municipalities, the judges, the prosecutors, the lawyers. Of course, with groups of women who were battered… This is not how it works,” she said.

She then sent a message of calm to women survivors of gender-based violence: “They should know that we are here with them, hiring specialist lawyers who recruit, train and recruit them to get the best judicial response from the courts and the Xàtiva Courts”. Finally, he assured that he would not allow this decree, which “victimized women twice and turned them into former victims,” ​​from his domain.

“RAISE YOUR VOICE”

Auxiliadora Borja, dean of the Valencian Bar Association (ICAV), said the legal profession “exists here and now to raise its voice for citizens because the right to defense is a fundamental right of citizens and it has a duty to ensure that we the people have the defense they deserve”.

Borja assured that the Ministry of Justice “showed that it lacked the necessary sensitivity to deal with the issue of gender-based violence in this case” with the Royal Decree on the adequacy of the judicial facility. He also stressed that “what is not the way is to remove powers on gender-based violence issues”, although he stated that the establishment of new gender-based violence courts “is the way and we actually agree on that”. Borders that have always had them, like Xàtiva, which required traveling more than 160 kilometers to reach the courts”.

Moreover, when it does have an impact, this displacement must be carried out by “the very vulnerable people who need to be most protected and whose change is assumed to be an undoubted deterrent”. “Time is money, but in this case it can mean so much more,” he added.

In the face of this situation, he assured that the lawyers would not “keep silent against this atrocity” and emphasized that they had warned the Administration about the “grave consequences that did not happen” before this regulation was published in the BOE. He trusted us for his development.”

Finally, he stated that they demanded the Ministry “to take back this situation” and assured that “of course” they would appeal the decision, because the lawyers “are the injured party and we have all our rights”. To defend the right of defense, which is the fundamental right of citizenship”.