Earlier this month a court ruling in Ciudad Real, Spain, acquitted a 20-year-old man who impregnated a 12-year-old Romani girl with twins in 2022. Spanish laws prohibit minors under the age of 16 from consenting to sex, with any such action amounting to statutory rape.

Despite this, the court granted the man a legal exception, after finding the intercourse was “consensual”. It justified its decision to acquit the man stating: “”in Romani culture, this is normal behaviour.”

Savera UK and Pride of Romany unequivocally condemn this ruling and find the court’s decision to be deeply troubling.

Charmaine Abdul Karim, Founder of Pride of Romany, said: “This decision, justified under the guise of cultural norms, is deeply troubling and must be unequivocally condemned. As British Romany, we assert that abuse, in any form, is entirely contrary to our values and cultural norms as British Romanichal. We are shocked and dismayed that such abuse could be misconstrued as part of our culture.

“This case does not represent our tribal norms within the UK. Perpetrators must face the full extent of legal consequences. We echo Sara Giménez’s stance that Romany culture does not condone abuse or the violation of rights, and we stand resolutely against such egregious acts.”

Afrah Qassim, CEO and Founder of Savera UK, added: “This decision is deeply concerning. Despite there being laws in Spain that protect children from abuse, by prohibiting children under the age of 16 from consenting to sex, the court has failed this young girl by wrongly using perceived “cultural norms” to excuse what in law amounts to statutory rape.

“As an organisation committed to ending ‘honour’-based abuse (HBA) and all forms of harmful practice, Savera UK celebrates the beauty and importance of culture and traditions across all communities, and works to prevent it from being conflated with or used to excuse any form of abuse of violation of human rights, as it has in this case.”

Savera UK and Pride of Romany stand together in condemning this ruling. Together we steadfastly uphold principles that prioritise the protection of all people, regardless of their age, gender, sexuality, ethnicity or background against any form of abuse or violation of human rights.

We will continue to work together to stop this conflation of culture with abuse, and end HBA and all forms of harmful practices for good.

To seek help and advice, or for more information visit www.saverauk.co.uk, follow @pride_of_romani on TikTok or email [email protected]