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Date Published: 26/05/2023

Spain fronts new law against racism with half a million euro fines

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The legislation proposes prison sentences for those "uttering expressions that spread hatred based on racism" in Spain

Spain fronts new law against racism with half a million euro fines

Spain has made the headlines for all the wrong reasons this week, with the Brazilian government calling for action over the racial abuse Real Madrid footballer Vinicius Jr was subjected to at a recent match in Valencia.

Now, the spotlight is on the Ministry of Equality to push through an anti-racist law that has been in the works for several years. In one of the drafts, Minister Irene Montero has proposed fines ranging from 300 euros to 500,000 euros for "uttering expressions that spread hatred based on racism."

However, the text is really focused on areas like education and training, measures that aim to prevent and hopefully eradicate xenophobia. For example, the document specifies that companies with more than 250 staff must prepare a plan which includes actions to eliminate and correct “all forms of racial discrimination or related forms of intolerance” in the workplace.

And some of the most serious infractions would heavily fine such behaviour as football fans shouting racial slurs at people of colour, as happened in Valencia’s Mestalla stadium.

The heavy lifting to finalise the law began in March last year, when equality activists and organisations were asked to contribute their ideas, but nothing much has happened since. Now, with the international floodlights focused on Spain, it seems that this might be about to change.

Earlier this week, Ms Montero urged the government to “accelerate” the processing of the anti-racism law, a strict and vital measure that “allows us to get to the root of the problem.”

The draft law of the Ministry of Equality proposes reforming four articles of the Criminal Code to extend and broaden prison sentences in the event that criminal behaviour is directed at groups and not at specific individuals; and includes among the punishable behaviours the denial of genocide.

Despite the push, it’s unclear at the moment when the regulations might pass into law.

Now read: Is Spain a racist country?

Image: Freepik

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