Anyone who kills a woman because of her “being a woman” is only guilty of manslaughter in Germany. The SPD wants to change this “misogynist and discriminatory principle”: In the future, femicide should be classified as murder and punished with life imprisonment.
SPD right-wing politicians from the federal and state governments are calling for tougher punishment for deadly violence against women. If a woman is killed because she is a woman, this must in future be recognized as femicide and regularly punished as murder with base motives, according to a statement made by the SPD right-wing politicians at a meeting in Stuttgart shortly before International Women’s Day on 8 May. March adopted.
“Gender-specific motives must be clearly identified and, by law, taken into account when sentencing,” the paper says. These acts are directed against the self-determination of women and are characterized by patriarchal possessiveness, emphasized the deputy legal policy spokeswoman for the SPD parliamentary group, Carmen Wegge. “This is misogynist, discriminatory and violates the principle of gender equality.”
Every three days a woman is the victim of a homicide in Germany. In court, such acts have so far only been classified as manslaughter. The SPD wants to change this “misogynist and discriminatory principle”: In the future, femicide should be classified as murder and punished with life imprisonment.
Unfortunately, the number of acts of violence by men against their partners or ex-partners is still alarmingly high. According to surveys by the Federal Criminal Police Office, such a homicide occurs about every third day in Germany – in 2015 there were about 135 cases, and in 2020 139 cases. For a long time, such cases were often glossed over as a “relationship drama” or a “family tragedy”.
If men killed their former partner in a separation situation, it was often only judged as manslaughter and not as murder. The perpetrator’s turbulent emotional situation was considered to mitigate his punishment, while his patriarchal possessiveness, which did not allow women to live without him, was not considered to increase his punishment.
The legal policy spokesman for the Baden-Württemberg SPD parliamentary group, Boris Weirauch, described violence against women in Germany as a “structural problem”. “Femicide is femicide and must not be downplayed as “honor killing” or “jealousy drama.”
A draft law by the traffic light government states, among other things, that “gender-specific” motives should be included as further examples of inhuman motives and goals in the list of circumstances to be particularly taken into account when sentencing. However, the draft does not speak of femicide as murder. It is a political demand of the SPD right-wing politicians, said Weirauch.
The Social Democrats also want to ban so-called sidewalk harassment in connection with abortions. In front of counseling centers, but also in front of hospitals or medical practices that perform abortions, there are increasing actions by abortion opponents, the paper says. “This happens, for example, through so-called vigils, through targeted addressing or insults to the pregnant women.” This sidewalk harassment stigmatized those seeking advice, subjecting them to massive psychological pressure and impeding free access to abortions.
In addition, the SPD right-wing politicians call for a judicial procedure in the statement in order to be able to quickly block anonymous social media accounts and to better protect women from digital violence. Violence against women must also be given greater consideration in family law proceedings, for example in custody and contact proceedings. “Parental access rights must not compromise the safety of either a parent or the child.” In addition, the Social Democrats are demanding more prevention and a nationwide legal framework for reliable financing of women’s shelters.
