Name: Italian parliament unanimously votes to make femicide a crime | BBC News
Uploaded: 2025-11-26T16:50:23.000Z
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Now to Italy, where Parliament voted unanimously to introduce femicide as a specific crime in the country's penal code.

This is the moment parliamentarians approve the law.

Motivated by hatred, discrimination, domination or subjugation of a woman because of her gender.

The crime will now automatically trigger a life sentence.

In a symbolic move, the vote marked the International Day for the Elimination of violence against November 25.

Latest figures show that in 2024, 116 women were killed in Italy.

106 of those are said to be motivated by gender.

In recent years, one of the most high profile cases was the murder of a student, brutally stabbed to death by her ex boyfriend in 2023 and later dumped by a lakeside.

The crime shocked the country, triggering a wider debate on violence against women.

Well, let's speak now to freelance journalist Sylvia Bacardi in Milan who has been closely following the story.

Sylvia, thank you very much for joining us on BBC News.

Well, it really depends on how you consider the law.

So this new law actually strengthens penalties for murders committed in the context of domestic or gender based violence.

And as you were saying, it introduces measurements such as life in jail for femicides.

It is a bipartisan law which is significant in a country where usually gender issues are often politically divisive.

Some people see it as just symbolic because this law still focuses largely on reactive measures protecting women after violence has occurred rather than preventing it.

And Italy has historically seen opposition from especially the political right against comprehensive sex and relationship education in schools, meaning that preventive education on consent and respect is quite limited.

There is also in this law a lack of clear systemic reforms to improve collaboration between social services and law enforcement and risk assessment before tragedies happen.

So some people see it as symbolic just because they argue that its practical impact may be limited unless you know they will be accompanied by stronger preventive measures, which is a really important point to reflect.

Tell us more about the wider context in which this law, which was brought by Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni, has been passed.

Well, femicides remains a very critical issue in Italy today.

On average, a woman is killed every three days and nine times out of ten by a partner or ex partner or a member of the family.

And many of these cases follow long term abuse that authorities failed to prevent.

We have a staggering over 40% of women that were killed after they reported it to the police.

So cultural attitude and systemic gaps mean that women are often protected only after the violence has occurred.

And they are not empowered and educated beforehand.

And cases like Julia Cheketins, the student that you were mentioning before.

That's why they have galvanized public debate about systemic misogyny in Italy, not just like on specific issues like this new law is addressing.

The Italian constitution guarantees equal protection under the law, whatever your gender.

Well, some people argue that this law could clash with Article 3 of our Constitution, which states that all citizens have equal social dignity and are equal before the law.

The question here is whether giving special protections to women in case of gender based violence constitutes an unequal treatment towards a part of society.

And scholars, legal scholars generally, they defend the law because they argue that it does not give women more rights than men.

It actually addresses a specific pattern of risk and violence that disproportionately affects women.

In other words, the law is meant to ensure substantial equality, recognizing that equal treatment under the law sometimes requires targeted measures to protect those marginalized.

Okay, Sylvia, very good to have you with us today.