A UNODC case law analysis of the role of female victims of sexual exploitation in human trafficking related crimes
The issue of gender-based violence in recent years has characterized the public debate and the recent period of criminal law reform. The so-called conversion treatments, which we are discussing here, require dealing with the same topic from a different point of view. To what extent therapies aiming at modifying someone’s sexual orientation are to be considerate as legitimate? And which safeguards must a legal system put in place in order to protect rights such as freedom of self- determination, gender identity and the dignity of the individual in relation to such behaviours? The aim of the work is to address those questions, by looking at the experience gained in other legal systems traditionally close to ours, which teach us that, under certain conditions, criminal law must also play a role in the fight against those phenomenons.
Published the UNODC research brief on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on violence against women and gender-related violence
After having reconstructed the specific regulatory framework for the protection of women against acts of gender- based violence, the paper focuses on the effective deterrent capacity of the innovations introduced in the Italian criminal code by l. n. 119/2013 and l. n. 69/2019 (so-called Red code) as well as the possible case of "femicide"; or whether it is no longer profitable to enhance the path of prevention. Finally, it is taken into consideration, from a perspective of resocialization of the offender, the hypothesis of recourse to paradigms other than the punitive one, always integrated with it
About the decision of the Audiencia Provincial de Barcelona on the "Manda de Manresa" case
In the Spanish case of the so called "Manada de Manresa" case is questionable if one can be sentenced of a rape made without using violence or threat.
A survey of the Criminal Court of Milano case-law shows the inadequacy of the provision on domestic abuse under article 572 of the Italian Criminal Code with respect to domestic violence, especially between partners. The survey confirms, on the other hand, the strong role played by the victim in influencing the outcome of the criminal proceedings.
With Article 1, paragraph 3, letter (a) Legislative Decree No. 93/2013, converted with amendments by Law No. 119/2013, the legislature has extended the aggravating circumstance referred to in Article 612-bis, paragraph 2 of the Italian Penal Code, previously limited to harassing conduct carried out outside of the family context, to stalking committed by a spouse during the marriage and by a person "actually" connected to the victim by way of an emotional relationship. Under the old rules, the conflict between the crime of abuse within the family and that of stalking, made by a spouse during the marriage or by a partner in the context of a emotional relationship, was easily resolved: the subsidiarity clause expressly provided for in the beginning of Article 612-bis of the Italian Penal Code entailed, in fact, the incorporation of the stalking actions existing "within the family setting" into the crime of abuse, inasmuch as it is a more serious crime. The aggravated allegation the crime of stalking pursuant to Article 612-bis, paragraph 2 of the Italian Penal Code, now encompasses all marital relationships or emotional relationships which not only exited previously but which also presently exist. As a result, the issue of the correlation between the crime of abuse and that of stalking, in the event that a spouse or partner commits the action, appears more complex; specifically, the distinction between the two cases is a problem. In fact, displays of aggression or harassing conduct and stalking carried out within the framework of the family (or that which is similar) may manifest in, at the same time, the criminal offense of aggravated stalking under the second paragraph of Article 612-bis of the Italian Penal Code and the structural features typical of the criminal event pursuant to Article 572 of the Italian Penal Code.
La c.d. legge sul femminicidio (d.l. 14 agosto 2013, n. 93, conv., con mod., dalla l. 15 ottobre 2013, n. 119) ha introdotto nel settore del diritto penale sostanziale e processuale una serie di misure, preventive e repressive, per combattere la violenza contro le donne per motivi di genere. Nella prima parte di inquadramento generale del fenomeno vengono analizzati i profili giuridici, criminologici e antropologici che sorreggono le nozioni di violenza di genere e di femminicidio. La c. d. violenza di genere racchiude al suo interno una serie di fatti di reato di diverso tipo (omicidio, maltrattamenti, stalking, percosse, lesioni), accomunati dal contesto e dal soggetto passivo cui sono diretti. Quanto al femminicidio, che fa proprio (o contiene in sé) il concetto culturale di violenza di genere, è un’espressione che descrive il fenomeno con riferimento alle sue basi empirico-criminologiche, ponendo in risalto la posizione o il ruolo dell’autore. La seconda parte del lavoro si indirizza più specificamente a chiarire significato e contesti del rapporto fra violenza di genere e diritto penale. Il tema offre spunti di riflessione sulla questione se introdurre all’interno del nostro ordinamento, in aggiunta a quello letteralmente e politicamente “neutro” di omicidio, un reato ad hoc di femminicidio (o femicidio), come omicidio di donne da parte di uomini “perché donne”, dunque in un significato specifico che non include tutte le uccisioni di donne, per qualsiasi causa e in qualsiasi contesto.