No means no: Germany toughens rape law after Cologne mob assaults

PanARMENIAN.Net - The German parliament passed a landmark "no means no" rape law Thursday, July 7, broadening the definition of sex crimes and making it easier to deport migrants and refugees who commit them, AFP reports.

After years of anguished discussion on the need for tougher treatment of rape by the German criminal justice system, the new legislation finally came together following a rash of sexual assaults in crowds on New Year's Eve in the western city of Cologne.

Deputies gave a standing ovation as the law passed the Bundestag lower house with an overwhelming majority, following an emotional debate.

Dubbed the "no means no" law, it explicitly covers cases in which a victim withheld consent but did not physically fight back. It brings what critics call woefully lax legislation into line with that of many other developed countries, AFP says.

The law, entitled "improving the protection of sexual self-determination", also lowers the bar for deporting sex offenders, classifies groping as a sex crime and targets assaults committed by large groups.

Justice Minister Heiko Maas acknowledged that under German law there were "unacceptable gaps in protection" against sexual coercion and assault.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet signed off on the measures in March after the attacks in Cologne, where more than 1,000 women reported sexual assaults and robberies on New Year's Eve, which were blamed largely on Arab and North African men.

The draft law was toughened again by the ruling left-right coalition last month.