But because the new law, dubbed "only yes means yes," carries a lower minimum sentence - the result of merging the crimes of sexual abuse and aggression - it has enabled some perpetrators convicted before it took effect to successfully seek reduced sentences or early release.
The "Wolf Pack" case, in which a teenaged girl was gang raped at the San Fermin bull-running festival in Pamplona, triggered massive protests and calls for legal changes after the five defendants were initially convicted of the lesser crime of sexual abuse because the 18-year-old victim did not resist out of fear.
When the sentence of one of the “wolf pack” rapists was reduced in 2023, Isabel Rodriguez, Spain’s acting government spokesperson, said the government still takes the interests of victims of sexual violence “seriously”.
Two of five men convicted in the so-called "Wolf Pack" rape case in 2016 have had their sentences reduced.
More than 1,000 imprisoned offenders had their sentences reduced by late 2023, forcing the government to apologise and amend the law with effect on crimes committed from 2023.
