Graffiti by a feminist group against Abascal in Castellón.
The Criminal Court 3 of Castellón has acquitted the feminist association Subversives Castelló and its president of hate crimes and threats against the president of Vox, Santiago Abascal, in connection with some graffiti in which the politician's face was visible with a red dot on the forehead , which simulated a shot. In the ruling, the judge states that “the requirements of a hate crime are not met” and that it is also not possible to “determine the material authorship of the images.” He also believes that it has not been proven that these images “incite acts of violence.” The verdict can be appealed.
The trial took place on November 22nd and the prosecution concluded in its final conclusions that the acts did not constitute a crime and requested a verdict of acquittal. On the contrary, the private accusation brought by the national leader of Vox himself described the events as a hate crime and demanded that the Associació Feminista Universitària Subversives Castelló, as a legal entity, should receive a five-year fine and the cessation of its activities and closure its premises and facilities.
For the president of this body, the indictment called for three years in prison and the payment of a fine for a hate crime or, alternatively, two years in prison for a crime of unconditional threats, as announced by the High Court of Valencia. .
The verdict came days after a group of people and organizations linked to Vox sponsored the rally in which a Pedro Sanchez doll was beaten and shouted: “We have to put an end to him!” in front of the PSOE headquarters on Ferraz Street in Madrid last New Year's Eve. The Public Prosecutor's Office of the National Court is investigating the lawsuit filed by the PSOE for alleged crimes such as threats, hatred, public unrest, illegal demonstrations or serious insults against the head of the executive branch.
In Castellón, on the day of the trial, fifty people gathered in support of the feminist group and the accused activist at the gates of the Municipal Justice of Castellón, with banners reading “Abascal al banal” or “Totes som subversives” and antifeixistes. ” In a statement signed by Subversives and Alerta Solidària, both organizations reiterated the “clear political intent” of the complaint filed by the Vox boss, with which, they said, he “wanted to criminalize the feminist movement and to harass the extreme right with the aim of” . to whitewash their hate speech.”
Concentrating support for the feminist collective. ANDREU ESTEBAN (EFE)
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The accused Subversives member, who was listed as the company's legal representative at the time of the events, denied the authorship of the graffiti in her statement and absolved the feminist group of responsibility for the events. Abascal, who had planned to intervene electronically, ultimately did not do so as the hearing coincided with his intervention in Brussels.
The judgment, which can be appealed, declares it proven that on a date before December 12, 2019, several graffiti were made in different parts of Castellón, for example on the facade of a building on Zaragoza Street or in Ribalta Park, where Santiago Abascal's face was seen with a red dot on his forehead as if he were simulating a shot. Some of them had the signature of the Subversives collective screen-printed next to it.
The graffiti appeared after a Vox event in the capital two months earlier. This visit of Abascal to Castelló triggered a protest by Subversives in the format of a “popular kiss” as a gesture of support for the LGTBIQ collective. The leader of Vox, Santiago Abascal, then filed a complaint alleging hate crimes and threats.
The judge states in the order that there is no evidence of the material authorship of the graffiti, since there are several people who form the accused association “and several also represent it, and all of this regardless of whether the defendant can understand or agree.” “with the message that was intended to be conveyed with the published images.” On the other hand, the judge assumes that the requirements for a hate crime are not met in the present case, since it has not been proven “that an incitement to “There has been a commission of acts of violence.”
Subversives was founded in 2016 at the Jaume I University of Castelló as a feminist and anti-capitalist collective with the aim of “bringing feminism to all universities and local places, empowering women through collective sisterhood and ending patriarchy,” says their motivation letter . In it they opened a space “where women can express themselves freely and feel comfortable” and invited them to “be part of our anti-patriarchal struggle”.