Polish Chamber of Deputies votes in favor of tougher criminal law on sexual offences
In Poland, the Lower House of Parliament, the Sejm in Warsaw, passed a bill with a clear majority for the toughening of the sexual offenses law. The bill was passed with 335 to 44 votes, making any sexual act without consent a form of rape in Polish law. Additionally, the sentence for rapes is to be increased from 12 to 15 years.
The legislative proposal must now be passed in the second parliamentary chamber, the Senate, and confirmed by the conservative State President Andrzej Duda.
The right-wing extremist party Konfederacja and parts of the former ruling right-populist party Law and Justice (PiS) opposed the bill.
Representatives of the coalition government led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk spoke of an important step for sexual self-determination in Poland. The bill was introduced by the Left party, which governs in coalition with Tusk's Citizens' Platform (KO) and the conservative party Third Way. KO deputy Monika Rosa stated before the vote that "sexual acts without consent are simply and clearly a rape" with the proposed amendment.
So far, the Polish Criminal Code did not mention the consent of the partners and defined rape only as a sexual act that is forced through threats, deception, or violence.
The House of Representatives, specifically the Sejm in Warsaw, supported strengthening the Polish sexual criminal law by passing a bill, which now categorizes any sexual act without consent as rape. The Coalition government, led by Prime Minister Donald Tusk, has praised this as an essential step for sexual self-determination, with KO deputy Monika Rosa emphasizing that "sexual acts without consent are simply and clearly a rape" under the proposed amendment.
