Protests erupt in Spain as five cleared of gang rape at Pamplona bull-running festival
The convictions in ‘The Pack’ case were for the lesser crime of sexual abuse, sparking widespread outrage
Protests erupted across Spain on Thursday after a court in the northern city of Pamplona sentenced five men to nine years each in prison for the lesser crime of sexual abuse in what activists saw as a gang rape during the 2016 running of the bulls festival in Pamplona.
“It’s not abuse, it’s rape!” shouted protesters in live television broadcasts from the gates of the Navarra provincial court when the ruling was announced.
Police stopped the crowd from advancing towards the entrance to the court, with some angry demonstrators shoving officers.
Thousands of protesters gathered hours later in central Pamplona and most of Spain’s major cities, including Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Bilbao, Valencia and Zaragoza. Demonstrators shouted slogans while some waved home-made signs saying “Enough of a patriarchal justice system” or wore red gloves as a symbol of protest.
“I am asking myself what is happening with the justice system in Spain and in the world,” 29-year-old student Nuria Beltran said in Madrid. “For a long time now the status of women has been denigrated by all governments. It is mind-blowing what is happening here, this is clear example that the masculine laws rule.”