Spain's ruling Socialist party deepened a rift with junior coalition partner Unidas Podemos on Tuesday by seeking to close a loophole in a new sexual violence law that convicted rapists have used to reduce their sentences or win early release.
The "Only Yes Is Yes" law, which arose partly as a result of social outrage over the so-called Wolf Pack case, centred on consent and was meant to resolve cases where defendants were convicted of the lesser crime of sexual abuse because victims did not resist out of fear.
But because the new law carries a lower minimum sentence - the result of merging the crimes of sexual abuse and aggression - it has allowed some perpetrators convicted before it took effect to successfully seek reduced sentences or early release.
