The government of France announced new measures against sexual wrongdoing Wednesday, including fines for sexual harassment.It also extended the time limit for rape accusations.
President Emmanuel Macron has said the bill is designed to make sure “women are not afraid to be outside.”
Last year, a series of sexual abuse accusations made against powerful men led to an online movement against sexual wrongdoing.
In the proposed French legislation, adult rape victims can take legal action anytime within 30 years of the wrongdoing.If the victim is under age 18, they can start legal action until they are 48 years old.
The limit currently is 30 years for those aged 20 and above.
The measure would also set 15 as the age of consent to have sex with someone 18 years or older.
The punishment of fines for public sexual harassment is one of the proposal’s more unusual ideas
Marlene Schiappa said police could order offenders to immediate payment of fines.The fines would extend from about $110 up to around $920.Fines could go as high as $3,700 for repeat offenders.
Schiappa told reporters that it was important French laws make clear that sexual harassment and threatening behavior will not be accepted.She added that there are no “lawless” areas in France.
An opinion study released Wednesday showed that about 90 percent of the French public support the proposed fines.Around the same amount support the extension of time limits for legal action.The study was done by the international market research group, IFOP.
However the new laws have critics, including one of the country’s most famous actors, Catherine Deneuve.Many argue the laws will destroy the search for love and sexual relationships.
Schiappa dismissed the criticism.When speaking last year to Reuter’s news agency, she said,“Some say we will kill the culture of the ‘French lover’ if we punish street harassment.But it’s the opposite.”
She said the law will make it clear that when someone says ‘no,’ the answer is final.
The bill also calls for stronger action against online harassment, Schiappa said.
法国政府周三宣布了针对性侵犯行为的新措施，其中包括对性骚扰行为处以罚款的惩罚措施。此次制定的法案还延长了性侵指控的追溯时效。
法国总统埃马纽埃尔·马克龙表示，该法案旨在确保“女性不会害怕外出”。
去年，一系列针对男性性虐待的指控频发，这种情况的产生导致了一场反对性犯罪行为的网络在线运动。
在拟议的法国立法中，成年强奸受害者可以在不法行为发生后的30年内随时采取法律措施。如果受害者年龄在18岁以下，那么直到他们48岁这期间都可以采取相关的法律措施来保护自我。
对于20岁及20岁以上的人士目前的追溯时效限制为30年。
该草案中将认定自愿性行为的年龄标准设为15岁，他们可以与已经18岁或者更年长的人发生性行为。
对公共性骚扰的行为施以罚款的惩罚措施是该提案不寻常之处。
法国政府负责男女平等事务的国务秘书马莱娜·夏帕表示警方可以命令罪犯立即支付罚款。罚款额度将从110美元升至920美元左右。对于复犯者，罚款可能高达3,700美元。
夏帕告诉记者，其中最重要的一点是，法国法律明确禁止了性骚扰和性威胁行为。她补充说到，法国没有“无法无天”的地区。
周三公布的一项民意研究调查显示，约有90％的法国公众支持拟议的罚款惩罚措施。也有相同多的民众支持延长法律诉讼的时限。该调查由国际市场研究组织IFOP完成。
然而，不乏有一些对新法律提出批评的批评者，其中包括法国最著名的演员之一凯瑟琳·德纳芙。许多人认为，这些法律将破坏对爱情和性关系的美好追求。
夏帕并没有理会这些批评的声音。去年，她向路透社通报时说，“如果我们惩罚街头骚扰行为，就会有人说我们会杀死‘法国情人’的文化。那么我只能说事实恰恰相反。”
她表示法律将明确提出，当有人说‘不’时，答案是不容侵犯的。
夏帕还提出该法案也同样呼吁加强对网上骚扰行动的整治。