The ‘most feminist government in the world’ struggles to maintain unity

On Wednesday, hundreds of thousands of women are expected to turn out on the streets of Spanish cities to mark International Women’s Day. Although it is an occasion that is celebrated in countries around the world, in Spain this date has taken on a particular significance in recent years.

That is in great part because of the prominence of gender in public debate, driven by the policies of the coalition government of Pedro Sánchez. In Spain’s deeply polarised politics, these issues have become a fierce battleground, not only agitating the right-wing opposition, but also dividing the leftist government itself.

In recent months, the administration has pushed through a barrage of reforms in this area. A law making it easier for Spaniards to change their gender in legal records – similar to legislation the Scottish government sought to introduce – has just come into effect. A change to the abortion law, making the procedure more accessible, has also been introduced and soon women suffering severe period pains will be able to take sick leave.

That all followed new legislation implemented last autumn which sought to clamp down on non-consensual sexual relations, known as the “Only yes means yes” law.

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At the weekend, Sánchez unveiled plans to make it obligatory for listed companies to ensure that at least 40 per cent of posts on their boards will have to be filled by women. Future cabinets would also need to comply with that threshold – in the current government 14 out of 22 ministers are women.

A previous Socialist prime minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, hailed the gender parity initiative and described this as “the most feminist government in the world”.

According to the far-right Vox party, the Socialists and their junior partner, Podemos, are waging a campaign of “gender ideology” which, it claims, criminalises men and undermines Spain’s traditional Catholic values. Vox leader Santiago Abascal said the government’s laws in this area have been created “by some crazy women in the cabinet”.

The conservative Popular Party (PP) has trod rather more carefully, accusing the government of using gender-related reforms to distract attention from more pressing issues.

Such criticism is unlikely to concern Sánchez, who has tended to cast the opposition as extremists who oppose the extension of social rights on principle. But disputes within his own coalition are much more problematic.

The transgender legislation generated tensions, with Sánchez’s Socialists taking a more cautious line on the issue than Podemos. The Socialists ultimately gave ground to their partner, dropping their insistence that 14- and 15-year-olds needed judicial approval to change gender.

“In the Socialist Party classic feminists predominate and they view the new law with suspicion,” noted La Vanguardia newspaper in an editorial. “In Podemos, meanwhile, trans activists have found a travelling companion and a vocal sounding board.”

But more damaging for their relationship has been the “Only yes means yes” law. A loophole in the legislation, which was drawn up principally by the Podemos-controlled equality ministry, has inadvertently led to more than 700 sex offenders so far having their sentences reduced, and more than 70 being released from jail, since it came into effect.

Podemos has insisted that the legislation is sound and blamed this situation on “sexist and patriarchal” judges who wilfully misinterpret the law. The Socialists have been more willing to acknowledge that the legislation is technically flawed.

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As a result, the coalition partners have been locked in talks for weeks, as they seek to formulate a new reform which can stop the sentence reductions from continuing without diluting the gist of the law. During that time, their differences have become increasingly apparent and public.

On Tuesday, congress is due to vote on whether to proceed with a Socialist proposal to remedy the “Only yes means yes” law. Podemos has spoken out against the initiative, which looks likely to receive the support of the opposition. The junior coalition partner said that in receiving the parliamentary votes of the political right, the Socialists were in danger of committing “a betrayal of the feminist movement”.

Meanwhile, the Socialists’ feminist credentials have been tainted by a cash-for favours scandal in the Canary Islands which has implicated one of the party’s MPs, Juan Bernardo Fuentes Curbelo. A video related to the case has emerged of the now-disgraced politician standing half-naked next to sex workers in a hotel. This comes just 18 months after the prime minister promised to eliminate prostitution in Spain.

With Covid restrictions over, the turnout for Wednesday’s marches is expected to be huge. But that will not be able to hide the fact that Spain’s traditionally united feminist movement is, like the country’s politics, deeply fractured.